Raise a Genius Kid Africa

David Kachikwu became an orphan at a young age, leaving him without parental guidance or love, but with a desire to turn his experience into a lifelong passion.

“I never got the opportunity to be raised properly,” he said. “I don’t want the same for other kids.”

In his twenties he created a Facebook page called “Raise A Genius Kid,” with a focus on providing practical tips to help young women nurture well-adjusted and academically outstanding children.

It has become an 800,000 strong parenting community and has expanded from Kachikwu’s home country Nigeria to South Africa, Kenya, Ghana, Cameroon and Egypt.

In this open-knowledge community, experienced parents help new ones navigate the complexities of parenthood, especially in developing countries where access to resources and parental support is limited.

As the original Facebook group grew and the community craved more connection through physical meet-ups and social impact programs, creating a WhatsApp group was a no-brainer.

“With WhatsApp, you can interact more with people from your local area and get to know them and plan hangouts,” Kachikwu said.

For Victoria Willie, an Admin, WhatsApp Communities, is a game-changer.

She used to find it stressful overseeing and managing five large groups in Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial city. Now, with Communities, all five have been incorporated into one group called the Lagos Chapter.

“It’s now very easy,” Willie said. “I post information to the announcement group, and the sub-Admins take it to their groups.”

She added that members “feel like their Admin is talking to them directly.”

Founder David Kachikwu agrees that other groups are missing out on a huge opportunity to foster connection and friendship if they are not yet using WhatsApp Communities:

“I believe every community group should be using the WhatsApp Communities feature. It will be very helpful if you own multiple related WhatsApp groups.” says Kachikwu.