As part of our efforts to scale the impact of our programs across the continent, students from African Leadership Academy have commenced the 2014 Social Innovation Camps (BUILD-in-a-Box Camps), which are being organized for high school students in local and disadvantaged areas across Africa this year.
In partnership with the Canadian Embassy in South Africa, the first camps were organized at Fons Luminis High School in Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa from February 8-9, 2014 using the unique BUILD-in-a-Box toolkit created by ALA’s Centre for Entrepreneurial Leadership. During the camps, 16 facilitators explained the concept of entrepreneurial leadership; taught the BUILD (Believe-Understand-Invent-Listen-Deliver) model for human-centred entrepreneurship and led the 60 participants in the process of identifying societal challenges and developing implementable solutions for them. Four other camps were subsequently organized in Alexandra and Soweto from February 21-23, 2014, and others will be held subsequently across the continent in the summer.
The camps, which are fully facilitated by ALA’s young leaders, provide opportunities for young students from underprivileged neighbourhoods to identify needs in their communities, learn the tools for effective entrepreneurship and develop ideas and solutions to address those community challenges. Teachers from participating schools will also have the opportunity to learn about ALA’s methods of entrepreneurial leadership training to inspire changes in their communities.
African Leadership Academy recognizes the challenge of excessive youth unemployment across Africa as well as the opportunity to maximize Africa’s youth bulge to drive the continent’s growth and prosperity, which informs our drive to constantly develop programmes to empower young people across the continent to create innovative solutions to challenges in their communities. Over the past five years, ALA’s young leaders have organized numerous summer camps in their home countries (for example, Gindi in Senegal, National Entrepreneurship Camp in Morocco, Egyptability in Egypt, Teen Entrepreneurship Summit in Kenya) to teach entrepreneurial leadership to their peers.
