News
The latest news from the African Leadership Institute and its Fellows. AFLI Fellows are leaders and change-makers, so this section has a lot of news. All text in all of the posts is fully searchable.
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Several Tutu Fellows have been selected for the 2024 cohort of the African Climate Ambassadors Programme. The Africa Climate Ambassador's Programme is a joint initiative of Jacobs Ladder Africa (JLA), the African Leadership Institute, the Climate Action Platform for Africa (CAP-A) and the Africa Centre. The organisations comprise the Africa Climate Action Advocacy Initiative, or ACAAI.
The Africa Climate Ambassador's Programme is a year-long programme and brings together 18 African expert leaders from a wide range of sectors to integrate insights on climate action and affect discourse on the subject in their areas of influence.
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2006 Tutu Associate Ndidi Okonkwo Nwuneli has been appointed the new CEO of The One Campaign. In an announcement on their website in February 2024, ONE said that after an extensive search, the Board had selected Ndidi as President and CEO.
Ndidi has more than two decades years of international development experience, including deep expertise in agriculture and nutrition, social innovation, entrepreneurship, philanthropy, and youth development in Africa.
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2014 Tutu Fellow Ada Osakwe has been appointed to the board of AECF - the Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund. AECF is a non-profit development organization that supports innovative enterprises in the agribusiness and renewable energy sectors to reduce rural poverty, promote resilient communities, and create jobs.
The role is a good fit for Ada, who is the Founder and Chief Executive of Agrolay Ventures, which supports early-stage companies in Africa in the food and technology sectors.
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The online news publication Rest Of World has done a lengthy feature on 2017 Tutu Fellow Bosun Tijani PhD, titled He was a tech rebel. Then he joined the government. Calling him a celebrity in Nigeria's tech space, it outlined how his transition from the private sector to government began bumpily when lawmakers were less interested in his professional accomplishments than his twitter account at his hearing. His apologies over critical tweets were accepted and he became the new Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy. Coming directly from the tech sector, the piece describes his appointment as a positive change from career politicians.
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The baton has been passed at The Initiative for Equal Rights from one Tutu Fellow to another. Retiring board chair Bibi Bakare-Yusuf - who chaired the organisation for ten years - was replaced by Chude Jideonwo, who was appointed in November 2023.
Bibi is the founder of publisher Cassava Press, and a 2008 Tutu Fellow. Chude is the Founder of Joy, Inc., and a Nigerian TV host, film maker and entrepreneur and a 2018 Tutu Fellow. TIERs is a courageous voice for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Nigeria, who face severe challenges not experienced by normies. LGBT rights are frequently infringed upon and homosexual activity is illegal in Nigeria and punishable by up to 16 years of prison in the conventional court system.
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2016 Tutu Fellow Succès Masra PhD has been appointed transitional Prime Minister of Chad by transitional President General Mahamat Idriss Deby. The appointment was made on 1 January 2024.
Succès is the president of The Transformers party and has been a long-time opponent of the Deby dynasty. He returned to Chad in November after reaching an agreement with its military leaders. He went into exile after the October 2022 protests that broke out when the military regime extended by two years an already 18-month transition that was supposed to culminate in elections and the return to power of a civilian government.
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Netflix has appointed 2016 Tutu Fellow Dorothy Ghettuba as Director, Content (Series & Film) Africa. The change in title adds additional responsibility and scope to her role at the streaming giant, where she has been working since 2019. She was appointed to the position in January 2024.
Previously, she was the Director, Africa Original Series at Netflix, which she started in March 2022. Prior to that she was Manager, Africa Originals Series, a new position that she started in June 2019.
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2023 Tutu Fellow Marie-Alix de Putter has shared her experience of the 2023 Fellowship programme in a moving account on LinkedIn. She recounts her journey and her classmates from the first Workshop at Mont Fleur through to after graduation in September, and her account includes the impact of the conversations on her.
The strength of the Tutu Fellowship comprises the strong ties built between Fellows as they grow during the conversations and introspection that programme facilitators enable.
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2013 Fellow Ifeoma Malo has won the Energy Entrepreneur Award at the 2023 Africa Women Innovation and Entrepreneurship Forum (AWIEF). She was the winner in one of AWIEF's eight categories at the awards ceremony, which took place in Kigali, Rwanda in November 2023. Each year the AWIEF Awards recognises and celebrates outstanding women entrepreneurs and business owners in Africa for their contribution to Africa’s growth and social development.
Ify was awarded her work in clean tech and climate-friendly solutions.
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The New York Times is reporting about an organization founded by 2023 Tutu Fellow Marie-Alix de Putter. Her Bluemind Foundation is providing training to hairdressers to be mental health ambassadors, to make an impact on the limited mental healthcare available in Africa.
The NYT article begins with the account of a woman in Togo, who had lost her brother and was having a hard time dealing with her grief. She knew she needed help, but couldn't afford therapy. Instead, she found help from an unexpected counsellor - her hairdresser. Her hairdresser had noticed the changes and created a safe space to share her struggles.
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2012 Tutu Fellow Julie Gichuru has written a guest column for All Africa titled Africa: Reclaiming the past; defining the future. The post deals with how managing information and imagery shapes views of Africa, by defining the narratives that shape perceptions.
She uses the photographic exhibit at the Moses Mabhida in Durban called South Africa in the Making as a point of departure. She describes the series of powerful images that chronicles the making of what Archbishop Desmond Tutu called the 'Rainbow Nation', that celebrates the strength the country could derive from its many ethnicities. The exhibit is narrated by Mac Maharaj, a close comrade of Nelson Mandela who spent years imprisoned with him on Robben Island.
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The 2023 cohort of Calestous Juma Fellows convened in the vibrant city of Nairobi during the week of 13-17 November for the second workshop of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation funded Leadership Accelerator Programme, which AFLI has been running in partnership with other African and international organisations.
The 14 Calestous Juma Fellows were selected by the BMGF as leaders in the field of health science and innovation, and in recognition of the fact that Africa needs strong leadership in science and innovation to develop the full potential of this under-developed sector in Africa, AFLI was requested to design and run a tailored leadership programme for these brilliant scientists.
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Nigerian President Bola Tinubu has appointed 2006 Tutu Fellow Dr Abdu Mukhtar to serve as the national coordinator of the Presidential Unlocking Healthcare Value-Chain Initiative. The initiative will operate within the auspices of the federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare and is part of the administration's Renewed Hope agenda. The announcement was made in November 2023.
The appointment is for an ambitious undertaking, unlocking billions of dollars of new investment in the nation’s healthcare-delivery system and revitalizing the sector as a whole.
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2020 Fellow Rose Funja has been appointed to the EASTECO Governing Board. EASTECO is short for the East African Science and Technology Commission. Rose will serve in the Outreach and partnerships committee. She was appointed in November 2023. The mission of EASTECO is to advance scientific excellence and technological innovation across the East African region.
Rose is a serial entrepreneur and is the founder and Managing Director of Agrinfo Company and co-founder of the She Codes for Change social enterprise.
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2018 Tutu Fellow Nozipho Tshabalala will moderate the 13th Desmond Tutu International Peace Lecture, titled Unlocking Women’s Power for Peace and Prosperity on 17 November. Her guest and distinguished keynote speaker will be international philanthropist Melinda French Gates.
The Desmond and Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation say that the annual lecture, initiated by Archbishop Desmond Tutu, has become a significant moment in promoting peace, healing, and courageous leadership. The Peace Lecture is a powerful opportunity to reaffirm the Arch’s enduring legacy and the values he embodies, not only for South Africa but for people worldwide.
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- Tony Edeh announces major grant to support entrepreneurship in Nigeria
- James Mworia wins Nature's Advocate Award from The Nature Conservancy
- Nigerian President appoints Dr Kelechi Ohiri as DG of the National Health Insurance Agency
- Nigerian Exchange appoints Ahonsi Unuigbe as its new Board Chairman
- Fellow launches a new fellowship for Black women in executive leadership
- President Tinubo selects Muhammad Dattijo as a Deputy Governor of Nigeria's Central Bank
- Josea Rono PhD appointed to Grand Challenges Canada's Investment Committee
- Elizabeth Biney-Amissah wins US DOE Clean Energy Award
- The class of 2023 Fellows graduate at the Oxford and London workshop
- James Mwangi makes the case for green investment in Africa at the Africa Climate Summit
