Help Chidera Escape Her Abusive Family & Go to Uni

Help Chidera Amanda escape her abusive family and continue her post-secondary education in a place where she will be safe!!

(This account was created on behalf of Chidera by her friend, Ashley. I'm based in the GTA and will transfer all funds to Chidera directly, as Gofundme does not currently operate in Nigeria. If you are in Nigeria and wish to donate, please see the note at the bottom)

Hi everyone, my name is Chidera Amanda Nwachukwu, and I will be turning 24 this July. Vulnerability doesn’t come easy to me, so it is very hard for me to speak up about my experiences. I appreciate you taking the time to read this.

I am asking for CA$36,044 to escape my abusive family in Nigeria and to attend a university so that I can build a better life for myself.

I attended Royal Crown Academic School in Toronto, Canada, from 2015-2016, and Western University in London, Canada, for one year from 2016-2017, before returning to my home country of Nigeria in 2019 because my family was no longer able to provide for me. Upon my return, they began to physically, verbally, emotionally, and financially abuse me.  Please help me raise enough money to attend university, so that I can provide for myself and become independent from my abusive family.

It has been made known through a range of abusive methods that I am no longer welcomed in my “home” here. I have dealt with years of depression, starting from when I had to drop out of university due to financial problems. My mental health has only gotten worse since moving back to Nigeria as my family tries to isolate and control me. It is not normal OR acceptable, and nobody should have to go through this silently. I left Canada to return to Nigeria to organize the next steps of my life, and it has been downhill since then. While I intend to move out as soon as possible, I need to go to university to make a better life for myself, and for that, I need everyone’s help. [Photos attached - sensitive content. Top text is from Chidera's Aunt; bottom text is from Chidera's Mom]


First of all, part of this money would enable me to move out of my family house for the sake of my mental health and safety. The most recent occurrence of abuse was my aunt ripping braids from my scalp, tearing my dress, punching me in the chest for coming home at 11pm on January 30th. My mom texting me to leave her house or she would be throwing me out when she is back from her trip. [Photos attached - sensitive content]

Another part of the money I have asked for would enable me to study a 3-year International Relations program at the University of Pécs in Hungary starting September 2021. This costs  2350 Euros per semester and would build on the one year of political science courses I took at Western University. The original plan my family had was for me to attend a federal university here in Nigeria earlier this year, which they’ve made clear they would no longer be paying for. Attending university here in Nigeria is not a viable or stable option considering that the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has been on strike due to the government’s unwillingness to pay university lecturers. The latest strike lasted for 9 months, from March 2020 to December 2020, but this is a common occurrence and will likely happen again. Going to school at a federal university here is too unpredictable - 4 years could turn into 6. The education sector is so unmanaged here that the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) advised the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency, resulting in the shutting down of schools for 2-5 years so it can try to fix the problems preventing quality education in the country. This instability could force me to live with my abusive family for several years, which is why I am looking elsewhere for my education. [Photo of Western University admission attached]


Another part of the money would be used to secure my high school transcripts, which are necessary for gaining admission to university in Hungary.  During my time in Canada, I attended Royal Crown Academic School in Toronto from 2015-2016. Before leaving Nigeria with the help of a visa agent, I ensured that all tuition fees and accommodation fees were paid for in full, totaling over CA$21,000. However, upon graduating, several international students were informed that the money we paid for accommodation had run out in December 2015. Thus, we each owed the school a balance of CA$1495. We were told that unless we paid, they would withhold our diploma and transcripts. At this point, my mom had just lost her job and some of the money we had saved up for my first year at Western University, including the money for my residence and part of my tuition. Things were hard, and we were not able to pay my high school the money we owed them because we were blindsided by this situation. Despite not having access to my diploma and transcripts, I attended Western University for one year, from 2016-2017. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to continue due to my mom losing her job, and now I have outstanding fees to pay Western too. This was an extremely difficult time in which I could have reached out to friends and the public for help, but I wasn’t bold enough. This time around, I am here to ask everyone for help. [Photos attached]


After coming back to Nigeria, I reached out to Royal Crown to ask for my Diploma and transcripts because I would need them to apply to universities in Europe. I graduated with a high average, and this would help me secure admission to the University of Pécs. What I received instead was an email of the total amount I owed. My mom is still unable to provide this amount of money, but I would not want her to hold this above my head as she has been doing all of these years, blaming me and stating that I “pushed her to poverty.”

Money raised from this fundraiser would cover temporary housing away from my family until September 2021, collection of my High School diploma and transcripts, the application fee for the University of Pécs, tuition, accommodation in Hungary, visa fees, medical insurance, the flight ticket, the general cost of living for my first two years and 2.9% Gofundme fees. Due to the language barrier in Hungary, it might take a little while for me to get settled, familiarize myself with the language, environment and culture before carrying out my plan to work part-time in order to make ends meet just as I did while I was in Canada. The reason I went to Canada was to secure the best education possible, to be allowed to have a fair fight in the world and gain my independence. The life I had envisioned for myself before going to Canada was that I would be part of the graduating class of 2020. It is not only heart breaking that I could not continue my education smoothly in Canada, but also disheartening that I still don’t have the funds to continue the quality and level of education my high school average qualifies me for. I want to go to school in a country that prioritizes education and I need a degree so that I can make achieve my goals to leave behind my abusive family and make a life for myself.  

I would really appreciate any kind of support, and it would mean the world to me! Thank you.

*NOTE: If you are in Nigeria and wish to donate, please make your donation to Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) | Account Name: Nwachukwu Chidera Amanda | Account Number: 0153079466 | Gofundme does not currently operate in Nigeria, which is why Ashley set this up. Thank you!