A group, comprising YALI Alumni and staff of the Regional Leadership Center West Africa, has interacted with the Former U. S. Ambassador to the African Union, Dr. Reuben E. Brigety II. The interaction was to discuss the Emerging Leaders Program and how the initiative has impacted the lives of young people in the sub Saharan region.
In his opening submission, President of YALI Alumni Ghana Chapter, Bismark Gyamfi, informed Ambassador Dr. Brigety II that the Ghana Chapter was recently established to champion the cause of YALI Alumni and provide a common platform for young leaders to share ideas. The focus of the Chapter is to also ensure that beneficiaries of the initiative get the needed opportunity to share their impact and success stories post-YALI.
The Alumni, according to the national president, intends organizing a national tour to establish regional branches of the Chapter. The purpose for establishing regional branches is to bring on board all YALI Alumni, irrespective of their location in Ghana. The Alumni Chapter also plans to collaborate with Mandela Washington Fellows to initiate a civic leadership program with the government of Ghana.
In terms of impact after the YALI training, the Alumni unanimously underscored the potential of the initiative to unearth talent and creating opportunities for several young people to transform them into meaningful leaders capable of creating employment and opportunities for others. The community project component of the training, the Alumni cited, changed participants’ perceptions and made young beneficiaries more inclined to serve as change agents in their communities.
Bismark Gyamfi, YALI Alumni Ghana Chapter President, outlines the purpose for establishing the group
On possible ways Dr. Brigety II could offer assistance to the initiative, the Alumni called for a collaboration between the YALI Regional Leadership Center and George Washington University, where Dr. Brigety II is Dean of the Elliott School of International Affairs. Such collaboration could come in the form of scholarships to build participants’ capacity to improve lives on the continent. Other forms of collaboration and assistance could come in the form of opportunities for partnerships with other foreign institutions and young entrepreneurs to enable the Alumni interface with other like-minded people from other parts of the world. These interactions could be done online, onsite or through a hybrid system.
YALI Alumni explain how the initiative has impacted their lives
Dr. Reuben E. Brigety II, currently the Dean of the George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs, underscored his delight at the impact the Emerging Young Leaders was making on the continent. The diplomat affirmed his support for the initiative and promised to work on facilitating linkages between YALI Alumni and other potential individuals and institutions to ensure knowledge and experience sharing as his way of contributing to the initiative.