Paper short abstract:

Reports of participants and organizers of leadership programs on their experiences and the application of skills learnt give ideas of their impact. This paper gives insights of interviewing participants of a leadership program in Lagos, seeks to improve impact& dialogue with policy makers

Paper long abstract:

Many NGOs provide programs that aim to teach leadership skills with different approaches. Assessing the impact of such programs increases the cost of running them. It is however a worthwhile and necessary task if the program is to grow and enrich the lives of many more people. In Nigeria, it would be helpful to have a systematic evaluation of the impact of some of the programs that have been on for up to 10 years. This paper provides information from self reports and interviews of participants a leadership program in Lagos in a bid to identify their effectiveness and their perception of how the programs have contributed to their development. The interviews and narratives of both the participants who have completed the program and the program organizers may highlight ways in which policies can help increase the impact of these programs. It will also pinpoint the areas in which the NGOs will need support from the government and other organizations. Insights from this review will also bring to light the approaches that have been tested and may be a template for developing more effective leadership programs which are sustainable and can richly enrich the people who participate in them and those they serve.