Hamzat Lawal

Hamzat Bala Lawal is an anti-corruption activist. He is the founder of Follow The Money, a social accountability initiative that comprises data analysts, journalists, activists, and students. Hamzat is also the Chief Executive of Connected Development (CODE), a non-profit organization that is empowering marginalised communities in Africa with access to information on how to better engage their government for the implementation of public services.
Early life.
Hamzat attended Model Primary School Asokoro, and served as a Boys Scout leader. During his secondary school, at Government Secondary School Karu in Nasarawa State, he was also a coordinator of Boys Scout and Utility Prefect. He completed his secondary school at Seta International College, Nasarawa State.
Higher education.
Hamzat Bala Lawal is a graduate of the University of Abuja with a bachelor's degree in Political Science.
Career.
He has worked as a Rep Serviceman in an information technology firm and later worked as an information technology specialist with International Centre for Energy, Environment and Development (ICEED) during which his passion for climate change grew. When his boss noticed the area of his passion, he gave him a United Nations Framework on Climate change website to research, and after going through documents and protocols, he developed more interest in that area. He later registered with many climate change platforms and participated in several activities.
In 2012, Hamzat was grieved by the poisoning that took place in Zamfara state two years earlier. When he realized that nobody was talking about the disaster and the people affected after killing more than 400 people, he embarked on a 14 hours journey to the community, Bagega, where the incident took place to learn more about the aftermath of the problem. This propelled him to towards community activism and to start a grass-roots movement known as Follow The Money, using data to hold government accountable, and demanding action from government agencies.
Activism.
Hamzat Lawal started his activism while in University of Abuja, then he was responsible for advocating for good student leaders. He has spoken out against corruption, human rights abuse and disfranchisement of community members. In 2013, he was almost arrested by Department of State Securities after they accused him of instigating youths against government.
Work.
He is a co-convener of the Not Too Young To Run movement, a Nigerian Youth movement whose support for young people's right to run for political offices ensured that an age reduction bill was passed across the country promoting youth inclusion in Nigeria's politics. He is an executive board member of African Youth Initiative on Climate Change.