For the first time since the pandemic began, Georgia State University once again welcomed a group of young people African leaders, continuing a tradition of welcoming innovators from across the continent.
The group was part of a cohort forced to participate in the prestigious US Department of State-He ran the Mandela Scholarship program practically last year. This year, some 200 of that larger group were selected to travel to the US and experience what they missed out on due to COVID-19 related travel restrictions.
The Young African Leaders Initiative, or YALI, was launched by former President Barack Obama in 2010 to offer a professional development program in the US for visionary and service-oriented youth from across Africa. At first, the highly competitive app routinely generated tens of thousands of submissions for 700 slots.
Atlanta, with its sizeable African diaspora, civil rights heritage, thriving economy, and focus on diversity, has always been a draw for fellows, who begin in Washington and spread to host institutions across the country. Clark Atlanta University has repeatedly hosted groups focused on entrepreneurship through its Leadership in Business track, while the state of Georgia Andrew Young School of Political Studies it has typically provided programming more oriented toward civic engagement. the georgia university it has also hosted some groups. In at least a year, 75 YALIs were in Atlanta at one time.
The YALIs who spent two weeks in the state of Georgia this year came from 19 countries, making up one of eight 25-member Alumni Enrichment Institute groups that the State Department placed in US institutions to learn best practices and build your networks.
“The program allows us to work with some of the most creative and innovative young professionals from sub-Saharan African countries,” he said. Sally WallaceDean of the Andrew Young School, in a news release.
A highlight moment for many in the group was meeting the school’s namesake, Ambassador andres youngparticipating in a discussion with the civil rights leader, the mayor of Atlanta, the congressman from Georgia and United Nations ambassador, who built strong relationships in Africa during and after his diplomatic and political careers.
The group also served the city, volunteering with MedSharewhich ships surplus medical supplies to many of its own countries, as well as purchases and distributes supplies to the homeless in woodruff park and working with him Multiagency Alliance for Children.
On the business and economic development side, the program included stops at the Governor’s Office of Planning and Budgeting, invest atlanta and the state of Georgia Institute of Entrepreneurship and InnovationWith Georgia Tech CREATE-X Program.
To learn more about the city’s global ties, they met with the Mayor’s Office of International Affairs. overall atlanta spoke to the group on their last night in town, exchanging notes on the city’s international heritage and moving forward to bring about change with the help of a carefully cultivated global network.
the Mandela Washington Scholarshipthe flagship program of the Young African Leaders Initiative, has welcomed more than 5,800 young leaders from the 49 countries of sub-Saharan Africa since its creation. Applications for the 2023 scholarships open on August 16.
Between 2014 and 2019, the State of Georgia hosted 125 scholars, 25 per year, and hosted 30 virtually in 2020 amid the pandemic.
Read more: A network of African business influencers, minted in Atlanta
