The District Governor of District 404B2 Nigeria, Lion Tolulope Senbanjo, has said that the district met most of the targets it set at the beginning of the 2024/25 Service Lions Year. Speaking in an interview with Daily Independent in Lagos, the said that practically all the clubs in the district executed and commissioned projects that will continue to impact society and communities for a long time. He stated that the district will take care of the project and maintain them, so that in the future, Lions can come back and continue to support, and continue to provide services to communities in the district. Sebanjo, who will be ending his tenure at the end of June, said that the experience been great, “For me, it has been quite insightful, full of a lot of memories, I’ve learnt, I’ve been able to network, I’ve been able to meet people, I’ve been able to overcome the challenges that have impeded our district in time past. I’ve also been able to develop myself as a leader, I’ve had to manage conflicts, I’ve had to intervene in clubs and even in district operations. So I’m glad that the year is finally coming to an end, it has been a wholesome experience for me and I don’t take it for granted, the trust reposed in me by Lions and Leos over our district has been great,” he asserted. During his tenure, the district recorded a huge success with regard to membership and number of clubs chartered. Speaking on the growth in the district, he said, “For me, if anybody had told me at the start of the year that I would charter 14 new clubs, I would probably say the person was lying. “Along the way, we were able to motivate people to join the Lions Club, we were able to support them in the club chartering process, to make it easier for them in terms of payment of the required dues to form the club. In terms of getting them together, we were able to do that with the support of Lions as well. A lot of Lions leaders came to our aid by helping us to charter these new clubs.” He thanked all the people that participated and were actively involved in the chartering process of the 14 new clubs, adding, “We were able to think outside the box, we were able to form two new Leo Clubs, we were able to form Diaspora Lions Club, not the regular way of chartering clubs. That really helped us to achieve this milestone.” Speaking on the challenges he faced and how he overcame them, he disclosed that the biggest challenge was in the area of finance particularly in terms of the exchange rate. “The exchange rate moved up by over 100% in this particular service year and we found that a lot of Lions struggled to make payments for their international dues, even to support our foundation became a challenge. So what we did was to try and put some incentives in place to alleviate that challenge. “And we saw Lions accepting those incentives and even motivating themselves and others to ensure that they finish the year strong”. Sebanjo said that he is full of gratitude to all Lions and Leos in the district, adding that he never expected the level of support he got. Elaborating on the support he got, he averred, “In fact, when Lions are talking about how the District Governor has done this or he has done that, sometimes I feel like without their support I wouldn’t have achieved all of these milestones or successes that we have recorded this year. “So I’m just full of gratitude; thank you from the Lions leaders, past District Governors, past Council Chairpersons, our international director, our Multiple Council Chairperson, my colleague District Governors, Lions presidents, zone chairs, region chairs, Leo Clubs, Leo Club members. I want to sincerely appreciate them for the support that I have received this year.” On the future of the district, he said he sees it going from strength to strength, adding, “I see us bifurcating or redistricting in the nearest future, giving our size. We have about 101 clubs at the moment with over 2,300 members. So we are ripe for splitting into two districts. I see that happening in the near future. And I want Lions to support this move to redistrict. “I see our district in terms of branding, in terms of publicity, doing more. I see our district serving more people, reaching out to more areas where there are needs, looking outside our current comfort zone to see the needs that are out there and Lions meeting those needs. So I see our district going higher from strength to strength. With the group of leaders that we have to take over from this administration in the next 1, 2, 3, 4 years, I’m sure that our district will continue to rise and rise.”