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New Leaf Foundation was born from a deeply personal encounter with the realities of Nigeria's prisonsystem. The founder, Dolapo Olowu, spent years observing well-meaning Christians and volunteersmaking regular visits to correctional facilities — preaching the Word, distributing Bibles, and prayingwith inmates. While these acts of spiritual kindness were warmly received, they seldom resulted inlasting transformation for the inmates who were eventually released.
The challenge was starkly visible: former inmates were returning to their communities with the sameempty hands and diminished prospects they had before incarceration. The stigma of imprisonment,combined with a lack of employable skills, left re-entering citizens vulnerable to recidivism — not from adesire to reoffend, but from the desperate circumstances of poverty and rejection.
Determined to bridge this gap, Dolapo Olowu founded New Leaf Foundation with a dual mandate — thespiritual transformation of inmates through the Good News of Christ, and the practical empowerment ofthose same inmates through structured, marketable skills acquisition. The name "New Leaf" itselfspeaks to the heart of the mission: turning over a new page, beginning a new chapter, and findingrenewal in the most unlikely of places.
From its origins as a small initiative in Nigeria, New Leaf Foundation has grown into a multi-nationalorganisation with registered operations in the United States, a mission office in Nigeria, and programmepartnerships extending to Kenya. Today, NLF stands as one of the most dynamic voices in themovement for humane prison reform and effective inmate rehabilitation across Africa and its diaspora.
To be a leading force in the transformation of correctional systems across Africa and
beyond — creating pathways of hope, dignity, and productive citizenship for every
inmate, regardless of their past.
To improve the lives of incarcerated individuals and support their successful
reintegration into society through skills empowerment, faith-based formation, legal
advocacy, and community partnership — restoring humanity to those whom society has
overlooked.
At the heart of everything we do is a deep, unwavering love for every human being regardless of their offence or social standing. We believe that love expressed through action — through training, mentorship, and genuine care — has the power to transform the hardest hearts and the most broken lives.
We do not wait for people to be 'ready' for help. We enter the prisons, sit with the incarcerated, and serve without judgment. Our compassion is practical, hands-on, and relentless in the face of systemic barriers.
We hold firmly to the conviction that no life is beyond redemption. Even in the darkest corners of the correctional system, we plant seeds of hope — in the form of a new skill, a word of encouragement, a legal advocate, or a community ready to welcome back those who have served their time.
We do not simply address symptoms; we go to the root. NLF advocates for systemic reforms within the correctional sector while simultaneously providing direct, relational intervention at the individual level.
We operate with the highest standards of organizational accountability. As a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit, we are committed to transparency in the stewardship of all donations, partnerships, and program outcomes.
True transformation begins from within. Our programs are designed to effect both internal change — through spiritual formation, counselling, and identity building — and external change, through the acquisition of skills, knowledge, and social networks that support a better future.
Every person in prison is someone’s child, someone’s sibling, someone’s friend. Before they are an inmate, they are a human being. New Leaf Foundation was created to ensure that the correctional system lives up to its name — that it genuinely corrects, heals, and restores. We have seen thousands of lives changed, and we will not stop until everyinmate who walks through our program walks out with dignity, skill, and a future.
— Dolapo Olowu, Founder, New Leaf Foundation
• Established as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in Pennsylvania, USA
• Registered mission office opened in Nigeria
• First skills empowerment cohort launched in Nigerian correctional facilities
• Digital Skills Academy launched — Nigeria’s first cohort of inmate digital learners
• Partnership established with Kenyan correctional services
• New Leaf Prison Fellowship Academy launched in Kenya
• New Leaf Leadership Academy launched in Kenya
• Cumulative reach: over 2,500 inmates trained across three countries
• Re-entry program formalised in collaboration with Nigeria's Ministry of Interior Affairs
• Free Legal Aid Services programme launched in Nigeria
