In the bustling social media world, everyone tries to make their voice heard, and few voices can transcend noise and really have an impact.
One of the voices came from Ifedayo Agoro, the founder of A Naija Girl's Diary (DANG), which started as a simple Instagram page and later developed into a thriving community with nearly 1 million fans on social media sites.
The journey of the former Nigerian oil and gas executive began with a simple idea in 2006-sharing her stories and opinions truthfully, without fear or shame.
"I realized that the culture of shame was developing so fast, and I said to myself,' This is not the way I grew up ... I want to tell my story, good, bad and ugly, and I won't be ashamed,'" Agoro recalled.
A frank conversation
Through frank dialogue and shared narration, when community members face taboo topics such as gender-based violence, discrimination, body image, mental health and reproductive rights.
Popolla's Ilya Kemi Arsac. An amazing metal sculpture shows "the beauty of black women all over the world" "The content is driven by the values of the platform; Live our best life, never be suppressed by shame and our experience, learn and forget everything. What meets these values is what we produce, "she explained.
Agoro, 40, advocates self-worth and independent information, and encourages women to embrace their own personality and make decisions according to their own wishes rather than social expectations.
"Women are beginning to understand that they are valuable whether they are married or not," she said.
She is often accused of being anti-man and anti-marriage, and Agoro is keen to clarify her position on relationships. "I'm not anti-marriage ... I just know that without marriage, my life is still full.
"Husbands will write to me and say that I have spoiled their wives and taught them to be rude and disobedient. Men will poke me on Twitter … they are just not happy that I have expressed … what other women are afraid to say, "she told CNN.
Although she admits that vitriol has been greatly reduced. "I think this is because I didn't flinch. I am a person who can only do what I want to do. "
Agoro was not intimidated by detractors, and continued to amplify women's voices to create an unrestricted safe space for women.
According to agro, this eventually led agro to create the #DangAfterHours series, which is a free discussion about sex and sex, which is a real taboo topic in Nigeria.
"Nigerian women will not be labeled as promiscuous when talking about sex. I want to talk about sex in a funny way. We can learn from it and establish contact on that topic. This response shows that dialogue needs to be carried out. "
Create influence
Over the years, Agoro has changed the lives of hundreds of women using the DANG platform. She claims to be "empathetic", and she finds herself integrated into the lives of women who ask her for help and advice, often "crying" and talking about their success and suffering, she said.
However, there was one moment that impressed her deeply.
"A few years ago, a lady fell ill in a hospital in Lagos, when doctors were on strike. She sent me a message saying,' I'm losing blood, pregnant and sick. Nobody takes care of me. Please help me, I don't want to die. "
CNN/ Taylor Sue interactive card "Living in fear: the danger of finding love online as a gay woman in Nigeria" Agoro said she was angry, so she posted the woman's plight on social media.
"After I posted that post, the then first lady's office found me and immediately solved the problem. The lady was quickly taken care of and her test was completed. On that day, I realized the power of what we did. "
When she started posting her story on Instagram, Agoro initially chose anonymity to avoid the pressure of public censorship.
However, as her platform became more and more popular, she met a critical moment and her identity was threatened by exposure. Instead of giving in to her fears, she decided to expose herself.
"I didn't think it was necessary to put my face … when the platform became bigger … I realized it might not be sustainable. I have the ambition to write a book and start a company. "Then, someone threatened to expose my identity, so I exposed myself. This is a blessing in disguise, so thank that person," she joked.
Agoro said that soon after, she launched her DANG lifestyle and skin care business, which was mainly developed through word of mouth in DANG community.
"We started with candles and entered the field of skin care. We didn't do any publicity at all, but we have sold more than 400,000 pieces. I attribute the trajectory of DANG's lifestyle to the community. But this industry must leave our comfort zone in Nigeria. Dang Lifestyle has been launched in Britain, the United States, Ghana and Kenya, and we hope to extend it to more countries, "she said.
Although her message is directed at women, Agoro does not underestimate the future of men's integration into the community.
"I get comments from men now, and they say to me,' We are damn men, too. Let's participate in the dialogue.' We are happy to involve them in the dialogue. I can see that some of them want to study and do better. I believe we must tell them what we want in a friendly and elegant way, or we won't get the change we want, "she said.