How our local partnerships create the conditions for lasting change.

In Nigeria, advancing gender justice requires more than strong ideas – it requires trusted relationships, deep local knowledge, and a strong foundation to support lasting change. At Rise Up Together, we know that sustainable progress doesn’t happen from afar. It is built within communities, through partnerships rooted in trust and shared purpose. 

As we shared in our series launch, our global work is powered through partnership with Employers of Record – trusted local partner organizations who help ensure our global team members are hired, supported, and able to focus on what matters most: championing hundreds of local leaders advancing gender justice. These local partners ensure our teams are supported, our programs are grounded, and our impact is driven from within communities. In Nigeria, that partner is NPHD Limited.  

For NPHD, this partnership is rooted in trust and shared commitment. 

NPHD is a Nigerian health and development organization with deep roots across the country. As Rise Up Together’s Employer of Record in Nigeria, NPHD provides the local foundation that allows our team to operate smoothly and effectively – ensuring our work is grounded in the realities of the communities we serve. 

Over more than six years of collaboration, NPHD has helped create a stable and supportive environment for Rise Up Together’s work – allowing our program to grow in ways that are responsive to Nigeria’s context. 

That foundation has been essential to how Rise Up Together shows up in Nigeria. As Theresa Kaka Effa, Rise Up Together’s Nigeria Country Director, reflected: 

“Our partnership with NPHD is something we’re deeply proud of. It ensures that our work in Nigeria is not only possible but truly grounded in the realities of the communities we serve. Their support allows our team to focus on what matters most – working alongside local civil society leaders to drive lasting change for millions of Nigerians.” 

At the heart of our work are local leaders – individuals who understand the challenges in their communities and are working to create solutions that last. 

NPHD points to Rise Up Together’s model of identifying and investing in local leaders as a key strength of the partnership. 

“We have been inspired by Rise Up Together’s structured approach to identifying leaders within communities, strengthening their advocacy capacity through targeted training, and enabling them to return to their communities to use advocacy to drive meaningful change through existing structures and systems,” said Dr. Sokpo. 

This shared focus on local leadership has strengthened both organizations. With NPHD’s support, Rise Up Together has been able to navigate Nigeria’s systems more effectively and ensure that programs are responsive to local needs, while NPHD has deepened its own work in leadership development and advocacy. 

“Our partnership with Rise Up Together has contributed to strengthening NPHD’s institutional capacity by exposing us to their global program model and reinforcing our operational systems, especially in the development of local leaders to address local demands,” shared Dr. Sokpo. 

“It has also strengthened our policy- and community-level advocacy strategies and actions.” 

What makes this collaboration stand out is not just what each organization brings, but how we work together – with trust, flexibility, and a shared commitment to impact. 

Much of NPHD’s role happens behind the scenes, but its impact cannot be overstated. “Serving as a trusted institutional partner means maintaining strong governance, dependable operational systems, and institutional credibility that enables Rise Up Together to operate effectively within Nigeria,” Dr. Sokpo explained. 

By providing a strong local foundation, NPHD helps create the stability that allows Rise Up Together to focus on supporting leaders advancing change. 

This kind of support may not always be visible, but it is essential. It ensures that programs are sustainable, trusted, and able to grow over time. 

For NPHD, the message to global partners is clear: lasting change depends on strong local systems. “Local institutional partners provide governance structures, operational continuity, and contextual understanding that enable programs to be implemented effectively and sustained over time.” 

Being part of Rise Up Together’s global network connects NPHD’s work in Nigeria to a broader movement for equity and justice – one rooted in partnership and shared purpose. 

NPHD’s role may sit behind the scenes, but its impact is deeply felt – in the strength of systems, the stability of teams, and the Rise Up Leaders who are creating change in their communities every day. 

Because movements are built by people. 

And the systems that support those people matter.