In a society where conversations around boys are often pushed to the sidelines, Beyond the Classroom Foundation has launched 'Big Brother Conversations,' a quarterly mentorship and safe conversation platform designed to engage boys on identity, discipline, masculinity, emotional wellbeing, leadership, and responsibility.
The initiative was officially piloted at Destiny Child Scientific Academy, Abuja, in commemoration of the International Day of the Boy Child 2026, where almost 30 boys participated in honest and interactive conversations around growing up as boys in today's society.
For years, many conversations and interventions around safety and empowerment have focused on girls, which remains important. However, Beyond the Classroom Foundation says it began to notice a growing gap while working with adolescent girls across schools and communities.
Addressing the Gap
Speaking during the event, Project Manager of Beyond the Classroom Foundation, Adah Emmanuel Ugbaha, who also served as a 'Big Brother' during the session, explained that the initiative was born from a question the organisation kept hearing from boys during girls' empowerment sessions.
'For many of our girls' sessions, boys would always ask us, "What about us?" And honestly, that question stayed with us,' he said. 'We went back thinking about it and realised that if we truly want to build safer environments for girls, healthier relationships, and stronger communities, we cannot leave boys out of the conversation. Safe conversations around respect, responsibility, emotional wellbeing, and leadership should also include boys.'
Building on Existing Efforts
He added that Big Brother Conversations was created to give boys a safe space to ask questions, learn, reflect, and engage in honest conversations around masculinity, discipline, self-awareness, and positive values.
The Foundation noted that while there has been increasing investment in girls' empowerment and safeguarding, structured conversations and funding focused on boys remain limited, despite the growing pressures boys face around masculinity, peer pressure, violence, identity, and societal expectations.
The initiative also builds on the Foundation's ongoing HeForHer Campaign, which over the last two years has focused on raising boys as allies to girls through school engagements and conversations around respect, equality, and safety. As part of the campaign, the organisation distributed its HeForHer Handbook and Booklet to over 5,000 boys across about 10 schools in 2025.
Future Plans
Through Big Brother Conversations, Beyond the Classroom Foundation hopes to raise boys who understand the value of discipline, hard work, accountability, empathy, respect for girls, and positive masculinity. The organisation stated that safer communities are built not only by empowering girls, but also by intentionally guiding boys and creating spaces where they can learn, ask questions, and be mentored positively.
Beyond the Classroom Foundation plans to continue the conversations quarterly across schools and communities in Abuja and beyond.
