From Reality TV to Impact: Adekunle Olopade & Lolu Shomuyiwa Team Up for the “Protect The Boy Child Initiative”

Big Brother Naija alumni Adekunle Olopade and Omololu “Lolu” Shomuyiwa are leveraging their reality TV visibility to drive national advocacy. The Protect The Boy Child Initiative (PTBCI), founded by Adekunle, has officially appointed Lolu as its new Country Head. The announcement coincides with the premiere of their upcoming documentary, Close The Gap, marking the first major project under the organisation’s landmark “2026: The Year of The Man” campaign.

PTBCI is a Lagos-registered non-governmental organisation dedicated to mentoring, educating, and nurturing boys and young men across Nigeria. Adekunle started the initiative to address a long-overlooked question: “Who is raising our boys?” Through structured mentorship, advocacy, and direct intervention, the organisation works to ensure that young men are actively included in vital conversations surrounding gender, development, and social progress.

The reality remains that many Nigerian boys face severe challenges, including rising school dropout rates, substance abuse, cultism, and a largely overlooked mental health crisis. Despite these pressures, young men are frequently left out of broader support conversations. PTBCI firmly believes that supporting boys does not take away from the advancement of women and girls; rather, it is a crucial component of building healthier, safer communities for everyone.

Director Adekunle Olopade during the production of Close The Gap, a documentary exploring support systems for Nigerian boys.

Reflecting on the urgency of the mission, Adekunle shared:

Nigeria has left a dangerous question unanswered: who is raising our boys? From out-of-school rates to drug abuse, cultism, and a silent…