Nigerian pop star Yemi Alade has disclosed that she plans to use her new role as a United Nations goodwill ambassador to help vulnerable people especially women in her home country.
Alade, 31, joined a list of celebrities including actor Antonio Banderas and footballer Didier Drogba as a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to raise awareness of poverty, inequality and climate change.
The singer gained global fame after becoming the first female Afro-pop artist to get more than 100 million views on YouTube, winning multiple music awards and featuring on Beyonce’s “The Lion King: The Gift” album last year.
“Women are among the 4 billion people who are trying to survive COVID-19 without any form of social protection,” Alade said in a video statement.
“I want to lend my voice to these women and other vulnerable people who make up half of the world that’s struggling to make ends meet. They don’t have the luxury of working from home and are putting their health at risk just to put food on the table,” she said.
