To help support and develop the social initiatives that young leaders are busy setting in motion to assist in solving critical social problems. Monash South Africa (MSA) launched MSA LEAD – Leading Entrepreneurs for African Development, a yearlong fellowship program.
MSA LEAD is a fellowship program for young social entrepreneurs between the ages of 16-30. Annually, MSA LEAD recognises 10 youth-led projects that are positively impacting their communities. The selected leaders are assisted to develop much-needed skills, given access to additional resources, and the opportunity to learn from and collaborate with one another to drive meaningful, dynamic, and measurable change.
MSA LEAD recently hosted a ‘pitching’ event on Saturday, 17 November at Monash South Africa’s Ruimsig campus from 09:30. The event was open to the public and will allow the 10 MSA LEAD Fellows to pitch their remarkable initiatives to the public. There was a workshop for inspiring social entrepreneurs on seeding ideas and systems thinking as well as a panel discussion on the role of youth in reaching Sustainable Development Goals.
A large judging panel consisting of 21 corporate leaders, entrepreneurs, MSA alumni and academics performed rigorous judging and examined all criteria, including the potential of the projects to become self-sustaining and attract future support and whether the venture has high potential for sustained social impact. During judging it was deemed integral that these young individuals are open to learning and have the potential for the leadership needed to assist their projects scale.
The 2018 MSA LEAD fellows that have been selected and will be presented on Saturday are
- Dineo Baloyi, Dineo Foundation
- Ntombikayise Precious Bhengu, The Mentees Ark NPC
- Lindokuhle Duma, Iziko Stoves
- Sarah Madingwana, Daveyton Book Club
- Mokgadi Molopa, Zamula Self-help projects
- Wade Schultz, Brownies & downieS in South Africa
- Molemo Seane, KOS
- Tshepiso Seleke, I SEE BEAUTY EVERYWHERE
- Moepi Setona, ‘Lets Talk”
- Proud Shoko, The Golden Drifters Education, Sports and Youth Development Academy Each of the winning projects receives $2000 to support their work. Fellows also participate in advanced training during a weeklong workshop covering topics such as leadership development, project management, and communications, as well as ongoing learning and mentoring opportunities throughout the fellowship year.
For information regarding partnerships and collaboration, please contact: Head of Community Engagement, Bronwyn Dugtig on Bronwyn.dugtig@monash.edu
