DEPOWA inaugurates families’ wellness initiative centre in Kaduna 

By Sani Idris Abdulrahman
The Defence and Police Officers’ Wives Association (DEPOWA) has on Friday inaugurated its Families’ Wellness Initiative Centre at the 44 Nigerian Army Reference Hospital in Kaduna.
The initiative was designed to provide accessible psychosocial support, wellness education, counselling and early intervention services to military and police families.
The President of DEPOWA, Mrs Mernan Oluyede, said the initiative was established to strengthen family bonds and improve the quality of life of security personnel’s families.
Oluyede who spoke during the official launch of the initiative and commissioning of the centre, said military and police families faced emotional and psychological pressures arising from prolonged deployments, conflict exposure, frequent relocations and constant risks to loved ones.
“Behind every uniform is a family; a family that waits through deployment, adapts to frequent movement and provides stability on the home front,” she said.
According to her, wives and children often bear the brunt of these challenges, including chronic stress, anxiety, depression and social isolation.
She said the initiative would provide confidential and accessible pathways through wellness education, support helplines, first-line assistance, professional counselling and coordinated referrals.
Oluyede stressed that the initiative would complement, rather than replace, existing medical and rehabilitation institutions.
She said the Kaduna centre would enable DEPOWA to deliver services, listen to families, evaluate outcomes and refine the model for responsible expansion.
She said the initiative would also help young people develop healthy coping skills, resist harmful influences and make choices capable of protecting their future.
Oluyede said DEPOWA refurbished and furnished the previously unused facility in collaboration with the Nigerian Army Officers’ Wives Association and 44 Nigerian Army Reference Hospital.
She added that the initiative would provide services addressing challenges confronting military and police communities, including harmful behaviours such as online gambling among youths.
According to her, DEPOWA planned to establish similar centres in collaboration with NAOWA, NOWA, NAFOWA and POWA, alongside other defence institutions.
“Our purpose is clear: to promote wellness, prevent harm, identify early risks and connect families to care,” Oluyede said.
She called on military and police families to use the services confidently, stressing that seeking help was not a sign of weakness.
Oluyede also appealed to development partners, philanthropic organisations and other stakeholders to support the initiative’s sustainability and expansion.
Presenting overview of the project, Dr Amina Abdullahi, said the DEPOWA-led initiative was being implemented in collaboration with NAOWA.
Abdullahi said the centre would provide beneficiaries with accessible pathways to obtain information, seek assistance and connect with appropriate professional care.
She said beneficiaries would include spouses and children of Armed Forces and Police personnel, as well as widows of fallen service personnel.
According to her, the initiative would provide a safe space, psychosocial support, professional counselling, family support and mental wellness education.
She said other services would include gym facilities, swimming, aromatherapy, indoor games, yoga, music activities and toddler and outdoor play areas.
Abdullahi said the initiative was designed as a judgement-free and confidential space where families could seek support without stigma.
She said DEPOWA would progressively expand the initiative nationwide in collaboration with respective officers’ wives associations.

According to him, interventions should prioritise prevention, early intervention and trusted pathways for personnel and families to seek professional assistance.
The CDS said the initiative’s wellness education, first-line assistance, peer support and referral services would complement established professional medical services.
He commended the collaboration among DEPOWA, NAOWA and 44 Nigerian Army Reference Hospital in establishing the Kaduna centre.
The CDS also said the Kaduna centre would provide an opportunity to test the model, evaluate its effectiveness and obtain feedback for future expansion.
He said lessons from Kaduna would guide the proposed expansion to other officers’ wives associations and defence establishments.
Oluyede urged stakeholders to ensure confidentiality, professionalism, safeguarding, effective monitoring and ethical service delivery throughout implementation.
He said the true measure of the initiative would be the confidence it inspires, quality of services and its ability to connect families to appropriate support.
He commended the President and members of DEPOWA, NAOWA, 44 Nigerian Army Reference Hospital and other stakeholders for their contributions to the initiative.
Oluyede said the Armed Forces of Nigeria welcomed interventions that responsibly strengthened the welfare and resilience of personnel and their families.
He called on stakeholders to support the effective implementation, sustainability and measured expansion of the initiative.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the DEPOWA Families’ Wellness Initiative Centre is expected to provide preventive wellness and early intervention support to military and police families.(NAN)
Edited by Yakubu Uba