Super Falcons captain Rasheedat Ajibade is championing improved hygiene, mental health and personal health education for grassroots female footballers through the Rash Hygiene Hub, an initiative of the Rasheedat Ajibade Foundation.
The initiative has completed three phases of its Lagos outreach, benefiting more than 600 young female footballers with hygiene kits and health education designed to improve their wellbeing both on and off the pitch.
The latest phase was held at the NYSC Orientation Camp in Iyana-Ipaja, Lagos, where participants received practical lessons on nutrition, mental health, personal hygiene, first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
The programme also featured a practical CPR demonstration conducted with the guidance of resource persons from the Nigeria Red Cross Society and other project partners.
Ajibade said the initiative was created in response to the challenges confronting grassroots female footballers, particularly those from families struggling to meet basic needs.
“Grassroots female football is chronically under-resourced, and hygiene is deprioritised when families are focused on survival,” Ajibade said.
According to the Super Falcons captain, inadequate access to basic hygiene and health education can affect the confidence and wellbeing of young players, making it important to ensure they receive the care and dignity they deserve.
One of the beneficiaries, 17-year-old Aliyah Oyelade of Goldenwealth Football Academy, Igando, described the programme as an eye-opening experience.
Oyelade, who has played football since the age of 11, said the practical CPR session was particularly valuable because it gave her the opportunity to see and understand emergency response techniques firsthand.
The foundation plans to expand the Rash Hygiene Hub beyond Lagos to other parts of Nigeria as part of its broader national ambition.
Ajibade said the project would follow a structured approach involving verification, registration, mapping, delivery, reconciliation, reporting and review to ensure that its impact can be properly tracked.
The foundation ultimately hopes to establish a network where grassroots female footballers who cannot afford basic hygiene products can access essential supplies and personal health education, helping them remain healthy, confident and empowered.
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