Super Eagles defender giving back to society through 100 Smiles campaign

While footballers who ply their trades in Lagos were in choice locations all over the world letting their heads down, Echiejile was in Nigeria talking and training kids through his 100 Smiles campaign.

During his holidays, the defender through his 100 Smiles campaign initiative organised an age-grade football competition aimed at developing the skills of indigent children in Edo state.

“It's a campaign that we started recently, all about giving back to the society, especially the little kids,” the left-back said in an interview with Pulse.

“We are not concentrating on only football, we try to go into other sports and try to get professionals from those areas to come talk to the kids.”

Echiejile started out at the Pepsi Academy in Benin where the likes of Kanu Nwankwo came to speak to them.

For the former Monaco star, that meeting had a huge effect on his career and he is also affording kids that same opportunity to meet with their football idols.

That’s why he brought fellow Super Eagles player Mikel Agu to the launch of the 100 Smile campaign which held in Benin.

“We want to have a situation where stars can interact with them. Give them a better opportunity to show what skill they have and do what they want to,” he said.

“I have memories of when Kanu visited the Pepsi Academy, and I knew what I felt like so I want the kids to dream.

“If the right decisions were not taken maybe I wouldn’t have been playing. For kids, you really have to show them the possibilities in life and they will make their choice and lot of them could be guided in making better choices.

“The kids are the future and I think we should concentrate on them.”

“Being around kids is very different, the feeling is also different, so real being around children, seeing them smile, playing around, how they think, they are genuine people to around with, ” he added.

At the launch of his 100 Smiles campaign, Echiejile who just joined Turkish side Sivasspor awarded football scholarships and certificates to 11 players and encouraged the over 250 children participants to stay in school and to also remain focused on enhancing their skills.

He explained that one of the key things that were able to take him far in his career was the belief in himself, regardless of his background.