Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders

Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders The Mandela Washington Fellowship is the flagship program of the Young African Leaders Initiative. Department of State and affiliated partners.

The Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders, begun in 2014, is the flagship program of the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI) that empowers young people through academic coursework, leadership training, and networking. The Fellows, who are between the ages of 25 and 35, have established records of accomplishment in promoting innovation and positive change in their organization

s, institutions, communities, and countries. Since 2014, Fellows have represented all 49 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. Upon returning home, Fellows continue to build the skills and connections developed during their time in the United States through access to ongoing professional development, networking, and collaboration opportunities with support from the U.S. Through these experiences, Mandela Washington Fellows have access to ongoing professional development opportunities, mentoring, networking and training, and seed funding to support their ideas, businesses, and organizations.

The Fellowship is excited to announce that Freedom Mukanga, a 2022 alumnus from Zimbabwe, is the winner of the 2025 Lead...
01/22/2026

The Fellowship is excited to announce that Freedom Mukanga, a 2022 alumnus from Zimbabwe, is the winner of the 2025 Leadership Impact Award! Learn more here: https://mwfellows.info/49QO5NU

2017 Fellowship Alumnus Richard Folly hosted the inaugural edition of Space Forum Africa on April 7-9 in Lomé, Togo. The...
09/17/2025

2017 Fellowship Alumnus Richard Folly hosted the inaugural edition of Space Forum Africa on April 7-9 in Lomé, Togo. The event featured U.S. Speaker Shelli Brunswick, who delivered a keynote speech on the topic of “What’s Space Got To Do With It?” Richard accredits the partnerships he formed with American experts and organizations, such as his PDE host at NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration , as important mentors on his professional journey. Learn more about Space Forum Africa here: https://spaceforumafrica.org/. U.S. Embassy Lomé

One week left to apply for the 2026 Reciprocal Exchange. Applications are due this Friday, September 19. Learn more here...
09/15/2025

One week left to apply for the 2026 Reciprocal Exchange. Applications are due this Friday, September 19. Learn more here:

The application for the 2026 Reciprocal Exchange component of the Mandela Washington Fellowship is open until September 19, 2025. The Reciprocal Exchange provide opportunities for U.S. professionals and Fellowship Alumni to form lasting partnerships and expand markets between the United States and A...

The application for the 2026 Reciprocal Exchange component is now open. U.S. professionals and Fellowship Alumni are eli...
08/25/2025

The application for the 2026 Reciprocal Exchange component is now open. U.S. professionals and Fellowship Alumni are eligible. Applications are due September 19. Learn more here: https://mwfellows.info/3HQPMRs

The application for the 2026 Alumni PDE is now open. Alumni from all cohort years who have not already participated in a...
08/18/2025

The application for the 2026 Alumni PDE is now open. Alumni from all cohort years who have not already participated in a PDE are eligible. Applications are due September 3. Learn more here:

The application for the 2026 Alumni Professional Development Experience (PDE) is now open. Alumni from all cohort years who have not already participated in a PDE are eligible. Applications are due September 3, 2025

Amadou Abdou Mahamadou Salissou, a 2024 Fellowship Alumnus from Niger and founder of Ouba Energy, is the 2025 Winner of ...
08/15/2025

Amadou Abdou Mahamadou Salissou, a 2024 Fellowship Alumnus from Niger and founder of Ouba Energy, is the 2025 Winner of the Mandela Washington Fellowship Catalyst Grant. Through a grant from IREX and D-Prize, Salissou will increase energy accessibility in the Sahel by distributing American-manufactured solar lamps in collaboration with d.light Design and Sun King. Salissou was inspired during the Fellowship by Sun King’s pay-as-you-go business model, which led to the three-member collaboration in the Catalyst Grant. https://mwfellows.info/4fzethM

Congratulations to the 2025 Mandela Washington Fellows for completing their Leadership Institutes! This year’s Fellows l...
08/12/2025

Congratulations to the 2025 Mandela Washington Fellows for completing their Leadership Institutes! This year’s Fellows learned from and forged connections with Americans on over 25 higher education campuses and in their surrounding communities across 21 states. We look forward to supporting the continuation of these new partnerships as Fellows return home.

01/24/2025

There's one week left to apply for the 2025 Mandela Day Service Grant! MWF Alumni implement short-term campaigns to support community service through volunteer projects. Apply here: https://buff.ly/4jf2W8L

Flashback with some of the best pictures of the year! 2024 was one to remember; here are some of the top moments you all...
01/17/2025

Flashback with some of the best pictures of the year! 2024 was one to remember; here are some of the top moments you all captured.

Through the Reciprocal Exchange component, a chance meeting in Iowa City led MWF Alumna Oummu Kulthum and Meredith Rahn-...
01/16/2025

Through the Reciprocal Exchange component, a chance meeting in Iowa City led MWF Alumna Oummu Kulthum and Meredith Rahn-Oakes to collaborate on empowering local entrepreneurs in Comoros with sustainable beekeeping practices and business strategies.

An Iowa MBA and a Mandela Washington Fellow teamed up to teach modern beekeeping and business strategies to aspiring producers in Africa.

MWF Alumni Shaibu Fuseini and Gifty Adzigbey collaborated on a life skills training workshop for students and persons wi...
01/15/2025

MWF Alumni Shaibu Fuseini and Gifty Adzigbey collaborated on a life skills training workshop for students and persons with disabilities (PWDs) through the Mandela Day Service Grant. 15 PWDs were empowered with technical skills and received start-up kits to launch their own businesses!

As a business coach and mentor for the Women Creating Wealth (WCW) program, MWF Alumnus Joram Ndagga was honored to judg...
01/14/2025

As a business coach and mentor for the Women Creating Wealth (WCW) program, MWF Alumnus Joram Ndagga was honored to judge the Youth Jumpstarters Challenge at the WCW-GMT Summit in South Africa. "The summit reaffirmed my belief in the transformative power of collaboration, strategic mentorship, and impactful investment."

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Washington D.C., DC

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Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

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