Kedibone Ndweni, the
recent Young African
Leadership Initiative
(YALI) graduate and
future civic leader.
Photo: Valentino Ndaba

 

The mandate of the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI) is to groom aspiring leaders who possess the potential to advance the development of Africa. Phiwe Mathe, former President of the UFS Student Representative Council and Kedibone Ndweni, a second-year Education student at our university graduated recently from the YALI Regional Leadership Centre Southern Africa.

Phiwe and Kedibone had the opportunity to engage in contact sessions; online mentoring; online self-paced tuition; industry placements, and experiential learning, in Public Management and Civic Leadership study tracks, respectively. They were incubated for four weeks, learning from the various industry experts and fellow cohort members at the Centre which is located at the University of South Africa in Pretoria.

Transformational learning

Developmental, political, and economic dynamics of region inform the core of the YALI curriculum and training. YALI was initiated by the President of the United States, Barack Obama, with the regional centre’s being a joint collaboration between the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and The MasterCard Foundation.

Empowering continental ties

Save for his group project, Phiwe is adamant about using the knowledge and networks he acquired to embark on an electoral education project in schools across the country. For him, participating in the YALI programme was “a great opportunity to interact with participants from all over Africa, and hear what their ideas are and what the challenges in their countries are. But, more importantly, to link up and see what partnerships we can form.”

Kedibone, who is an ambassador of the UFS Human Rights Desk, is passionate about being a change agent, and intends to work on a collaborative project which aids high-school learners from rural communities in accessing higher education. “I have already advised my faculty to suggest to students undertaking their practicals in rural areas to take a bundle of applications with them, and help those learners apply. And when those students arrive at the university, they will find a support structure by mentors - my fellow Education students,” she said.

The new graduates are currently working on individual and group projects which will soon be launched and implemented for the betterment of our country and the continent.