African Leadership Academy
September 28th, 2006 | Published in Africa, Education, Governance | 3 Comments
There is no doubt that Africa has been in a leadership drought and thirst for fresh and invigorating, and result-oriented leaders. Is the African Academy (South Africa), which “seeks to admit and educate talented 15-18 year-old future leaders from across the African continent”, the answer?
The Academy’s website emphasize that “students will be accepted based on merit and without regard to the students’ race, gender, citizenship, religious affiliation, class, or family wealth,†for an intensive 2-year tutelage
And if you are thinking what I’m too: “how Academy will ensure that its graduates will stay in Africa in the long-term?”. See this:
“During its intense 2-year program, the Academy will instill in its students a deep sense of commitment to the African continent. The Academy’s mentorship program and alumni network will offer frequent exposure to the fantastic opportunities that exist for talented individuals in Africa. Through its alumni program, the Academy will maintain contact with its graduates who decide to attend overseas universities and will proactively facilitate the return of such graduates to Africa through its career placement office.”
This is a good idea, if the stakeholders can do all that stated on the school’s website. Otherwise, the academy will only succeed in broadening the gap between the ‘haves’ and ‘haves not’. And this really worries me.
[tag] Africa Academy[/tag]
September 28th, 2006 at 2:17 pm (#)
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January 3rd, 2007 at 1:29 am (#)
[…] African Leadership Academy […]