In 2004, a group of young South Africans, selected for their acknowledged leadership potential, envisioned that by 2020, South Africa would be “An inclusive, prosperous and just society founded on ubuntu, equality and freedom, fostering creativity and allowing its people to realise their full potential.” This Vision formed the foundation of their preferred scenario – “All aboard the Dual Carriageway”. It was one of four scenarios, ranging from disastrous to optimal.

Their hope was that “a quarter of a century after its transition to democracy, it would be a South Africa that has significantly dealt with the legacy of underdevelopment, poverty, unemployment and inequality that it had inherited. They imagined a South Africa that will have proudly taken its place within the world community of nations, as an economic and political equal.”  The group was facilitated by - and the final paper drafted by - Olubenga Adesida PhD, and myself.

The African Leadership Institute in South Africa (AFLI) is pleased to announce the appointment of Trevor Manuel as Chairman, following the end of Ronnie Ntuli’s tenure after three years of service during which time he very successfully restructured the Institute’s governance and prepared for a seamless transition as the Founders stepped back.

The African Leadership Institute was founded in 2003 by Sean Lance and Peter Wilson and is committed to nurturing the leadership capabilities of Africa's highest potential young leaders in the age range 25-39.  It is the vision of the Founders that this values-based network of visionary, strategic, self-aware and ethical African leaders become the catalysts for change and the transformation of Africa. Archbishop Desmond Tutu is the Patron of the Institute and the flagship offering is the Archbishop Tutu Leadership Programme which is delivered in partnership with Oxford University.

It is clear that we are living in exceptional and unprecedented times. The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted our ways of working and interacting and, naturally, AFLI has also been impacted. This post provides some sense of the impact of the pandemic and its implications on the Tutu Fellowship Programme.

When the effects of the pandemic were starting to be felt in March 2020, we had just completed the process of selecting our 2020 Archbishop Tutu Leadership Associates. We carried the news of that announcement here in our News.

The African Leadership Institute is pleased to announce that once again, a set of really exceptional emerging African leaders has been selected for the prestigious Tutu Leadership Fellowship for 2020. We received more than 300 nominees of outstanding quality from 36 African countries, from which 21 of Africa’s highest-potential young leaders were selected to take part in the programme. Including the candidates nominated by our sponsoring organisations, the candidates represent 11 different African countries, ranging from 30 to 39 years of age, and span several industries. The selected candidates demonstrate the incredible wealth and breadth of leadership talent that exists in Africa’s youth, which bodes well for Africa’s future.

The African Leadership Institute has a very strong cohort of emerging African leaders for the prestigious Tutu Leadership Fellowship for 2019. Amongst nearly 250 nominees of outstanding quality from more than 30 African countries, 23 of Africa’s highest potential young leaders were selected to take part in the programme. Including the candidates nominated by our sponsoring organisations, the candidates represent 12 different African countries, ranging in age 25 to 39 years of age, and span several industries. The selected candidates demonstrate the incredible wealth and breadth of leadership talent that exists in Africa’s youth.

The biographies of the 2019 candidates follow:

The African Leadership Institute was founded by Sean Lance and myself – Peter Wilson. Sean is a very successful South African businessman, now retired and living in Plettenberg Bay. I had known Sean for many years as a fierce competitor on the sports field, and as we knew each other’s capabilities, Sean contracted me to do some scenario-based strategy consulting work for his team when he was Chief Operating Officer and a Board member of Glaxo-Wellcome in London – and scheduled to become CEO of the second biggest company by market capitalisation on the London Stock Exchange. A few weeks before he was due to become CEO he disagreed with the Board over the proposed merger with SmithKlineBeecham and thus left Glaxo to become CEO and ultimately Chairman of Chiron, a big-four biotechnology company based in San Francisco. Having established a working relationship at Glaxo, when he moved he asked me to help him restructure the strategy of this fast-growing company. Sean and I worked closely on this task for five years, and during this time, we often spoke after hours about what we could do to give back to the continent of our heritage. Both of us have deep roots in Africa going back about 200 years.

With the 2018 Tutu Fellowship programme having come to a close, the small group of 26 young leaders who made this year's journey of discovery, self-reflection, and growth are sharing the impact it has had on their lives.  The Tutu Leadership Programme seeks to provide the candidates selected for the programme with tools for life-long reflection and decision making as servant-leaders in their various walks of life across the continent. 

The words of some of the members of the Class of 2018 illustrates how they experienced the Tutu Leadership Programme.

Archbishop Tutu Fellowship Certificates were awarded to the 2018 Tutu Fellows at an exuberant celebratory event kindly hosted by Lord Hacking at his home in London at the end of an intensive but very rewarding 10-day workshop at Oxford University and in London. Old favourites continued to be amongst the highlights of the week – conducting choristers in Exeter College chapel, Eddie Obeng’s aliens, good kings/queens, warriors and medicine women in Mythodrama’s Henry V, cooking lunch with Caryn and Ros, dining in the House of Lords after a personal conducted tour of the Houses of Parliament, and Andrew Feinstein’s amazing stories of corruption in the global arms trade.

The African Leadership Institute, once again, has a very strong cohort of emerging African leaders for the prestigious Tutu Leadership Fellowship for 2018.  Amongst nearly 300 nominees of outstanding quality from over 30 African countries, 18 of Africa’s highest potential young leaders were selected to take part in the programme. Including the candidates nominated by our sponsoring organisations, the candidates represent ten different African countries and various industries, and range from 30 to 39 years of age. The selected candidates demonstrate the incredible wealth and breadth of leadership talent that exists in Africa’s youth.  The biographies of the 2018 candidates follow:

When nominations closed earlier this week, there were close to 300 really top quality nominations of emerging African leaders from across the continent for the 2018 Tutu Leadership Fellowship.  We were again impressed by the breadth of outstanding candidates who are applying for the Fellowship, reinforcing what we already know: that there is no shortage of excellent young leaders on the continent. 

The second essay written by the 2017 Tutu Fellows we are publishing is a brilliantly written piece by Rori Tshabalala. Rori posits that in spite of a checkered and painful past, Africa still preserves its history not as a past to be learnt from but as a persistent present to be tolerated, reinforced, normalized and passed on to future generations. He suggests that rather than repeating and emotionalising the past we need to summon the courage to learn the painful history but equip the people with the skills and knowledge to capture the promise and potential of the future so they may never suffer the humiliation that their forebears suffered.

A final celebratory dinner hosted by Investec in their London offices on 15th September brought to an end a six-month tumultuous journey of learning, of exploration, of self-reflection and establishing bonds of friendship and collaboration amongst 28 of Africa’s highest-potential emerging leaders, that will pertain across thousands of kilometres and for many many years. The Tutu Fellowship awards were presented at the dinner to those who had met the exacting standards required by the Fellowship and the 2017 class of newly-awarded Tutu Fellows dispersed to fulfil their potential and commitment as young leaders to make Africa a better place for all to live in.

Each of the 2017 Tutu Fellows were required to submit an essay on leadership in Africa. There were a number of excellent essays written, as can be expected from a specially-selected group of Africa’s finest emerging leaders. This essay by Sam Ngcolomba is the first of several we will publish over the next few months. She starts with an amazing story of courage and leadership by a young girl, and goes on to challenge the foundations of established leadership on the continent.

The first workshop of the 2017 Tutu Leadership Fellowship Programme was held at Mont Fleur Conference Centre from the 22nd to the 29th of April. The 26 Fellowship candidates, selected from more than 300 nominees, were from 11 African countries such as Equitorial Guinea, Sierra Leone and Egypt. 

The intensive leadership learning activities at the retreat in the Stellenbosch mountains provided space for introspection and time for friendships to develop among the cohort. This will serve them in good stead when they return home, ready to tackle and make a difference in the challenges of leadership in Africa.

The African Leadership Institute has a strong cohort of candidates for the prestigious Tutu Leadership Fellowship.  Amongst nearly 300 nominees from over 30 African countries, 26 of Africa’s highest potential young leaders were selected to take part in the programme. Spanning various industries, representing eleven African countries and ranging from 29 to 39 years of age, the selected candidates demonstrate the wealth and breadth of leadership talent that exists in Africa’s youth.  The biographies of the 2017 candidates follows: