Happy New Year!

On behalf of everyone here at the Young Leaders Mentorship Programme, I'd like to wish you a very happy new year in advance!! Thank you so much for sticking with us over this past year; we hope you've enjoyed reading and following up with us.

We'll be back bigger and better in the new year with even more updates! Till then, enjoy the new year celebrations, and all the best for the year to come!!!

Mentor-mentee sessions start this term!

2011 is fast approaching and with it comes term two of our second Mentorship Programme - exciting stuff! Not much will be changing; we'll still be meeting once every couple of weeks as a group for our Mini Seminars, and (we hope!) you'll still be arranging your own meetings within your groups to go over your Cheat Sheets, The Cross Drums and anything else that might come up.

In the spirit of newness the new year will bring though, we will be adding another aspect to the Programme. For the first time ever, we will run special 'mentor-mentee' sessions in between our Mini Seminars. These will provide all mentor groups with a few structured (and I use that term loosely) sessions in a month where you can meet up. The content covered during these sessions is optional; you are free to decide what exactly you use these sessions for. We do recommend however, that you spend at least some of these sessions to start - or continue if you've done that already - discussing and filling out your Appraisal Forms.

Our Appraisal Forms are an essential part of the Programme as they provide the backbone we use to evaluate your mentoring relationships. In other words, they're what we use to find out how well the Programme is working. Enough about that for now though - we'll have plenty of time to discuss this further during the term. If however you have any questions, feel free to shoot me an email or just leave a comment below.

So that's it for a while, but be sure to check back soon. Happy new year in advance!!!

MasterCard Foundation works with unemployed African youth

The MasterCard Foundation will be working in collaboration with the UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) to run YouthStart; an organization that has committed $12m over four years to support financial institutions running sustainable financial services for the youth of Africa. More details in this article:

Some 200,000 low-income youth in sub-Saharan Africa will benefit from a United Nations-backed initiative announced today to increase access for them to financial services in a region where youth unemployment rates are two to three times that of adults.

YouthStart, co-sponsored by UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) and the MasterCard Foundation, which has made a four-year, $12 million contribution, is a competition-based programme that will identify and support up to 12 financial institutions to pilot and roll out sustainable financial services tailored to youth.

“We are excited about the potential for YouthStart to accelerate the establishment of youth financial services in sub-Saharan Africa,” UNCDF Executive Secretary David Morrison said.

“Our strong expertise in ensuring that more households and small businesses gain access to credit, savings, insurance and other financial services that expand opportunities, combined with the Foundation’s network and resources, presents another boost for reducing poverty and accelerating progress towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs),” he added, referring to UN targets to slash a host of social ills by 2015.

UNCDF will encourage collaboration among financial institutions and providers of non-financial services to spur innovation and influence policy decisions, enabling youth to participate in inclusive financial sectors.

Today, more than a quarter of the population of sub-Saharan Africa are between the ages of 12 to 24, making this group of youngsters the largest ever to be entering adulthood. Half of them remain illiterate, and young women in particular face a more challenging transition to the workplace and independent adulthood since they are more likely to fail to complete primary education and face increasing insecurity and discrimination in the labour market.

New video game educates youth on HIV spread & prevention

More and more, the power of technology is being harnessed to address development issues around the world. Creative solutions to long-standing problems are being created all the time. Now, a video game has been created for 16 - 24 year olds educating them on HIV-related issues. More from the UNESCO website:

The HIV and AIDS pandemic continues to grow, particularly affecting young people around the world. Young people often want to talk to their parents about HIV-related issues, but may find it difficult to do so.

Children may worry about parents’ disapproval and have fears about the risk of becoming infected with HIV. Parents are often shy, lack accurate information about HIV and AIDS, or do not have sufficient skills to speak about prevention with their children, and teachers frequently assume that parents will talk with children at home. Consequently, youth do not receive essential information on HIV and AIDS through the adults who are closest to them.

The computer game “Fast Car: Travelling Safely around the World” aims to provide young people with accurate and reliable information about HIV prevention, intending to educate and entertain as well as promoting healthy behaviour.

The project entitled “Development of interactive multimedia tools on HIV and AIDS for youth” aims to develop more accurate and youth friendly HIV-preventive information materials in interactive multimedia formats which address the needs of young people, in a culturally and gender sensitive manner in order to help young people to gain an accurate understanding and reliable information on HIV and AIDS issues and preventive practices, which may change their behaviour.

The project also aims to fill the gap in the computer games area, particularly in developing educational games, which combine education and entertainment. It is expected that the computer game will be used to promote dialogue, especially balanced-gender relations, and self-expression as well as present and share science content. It is also expected that the technology will be a cost-effective means of widening access to health education programmes.

The game is available for download (free of charge) here. Let me know what you think!

We've been reading...

Making government work can transform Africa
Huffington Post -- As British Prime Minister I trebled aid to Africa. At the 2005 G8 summit we took far-reaching steps in debt cancellation worth more than $100 billion to the poorest African nations. I am immensely proud of what we achieved at Gleneagles: Every day since, the aid given to developing countries has been saving thousands of lives. But I came to recognize that aid alone is not the answer. The truth is that ultimately Africa's future prosperity lies with the decisions of Africa's leaders. We need leadership that is democratic, accountable and transparent. But in addition, we need leadership that is effective, that can shape plans and deliver policies that will make a difference on the ground. The problem for many African countries is not the absence of the right vision or the right intentions. It is the simple lack of capacity to achieve them..

Leaders leave Ivory Coast talks
BBC -- West African leaders have ended their mission to Ivory Coast, having failed to persuade incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo to stand down. They had hoped Mr Gbagbo would agree to cede power to Allasane Ouattara, widely considered to be the true winner of November's elections. But Mr Gbagbo has refused, despite the leaders' threat of military action. The dispute has led to widespread unrest in Ivory Coast, with thousands fleeing and scores of people killed. State-controlled TV has indicated that several million African nationals from other countries living in Ivory Coast might be at risk if threats from African countries of military intervention against Mr Gbagbo continue...

Behaviour change: Critical for newborn survival
Gates Foundation -- There’s plenty of evidence that simple and affordable interventions can save newborn lives. So why haven’t we been able to translate this knowledge more effectively into gains in newborn survival? A critical problem is getting people to change their behavior. In order for any community-based health intervention to be successful, families and communities must transition to new behaviors. Is there a science or method for enabling a smooth and sustained transition? Where are we falling short in our current efforts towards improving newborn survival? Are there insights from other disciplines that we can integrate into our current understanding of behavior change? These were some of the questions that besieged my colleagues and me as we designed an essential newborn care intervention package for a rural Indian community in 2004, and continue to challenge us even today...

Progress on a roll in Kenya
CIPE -- If you’re working in global development and you have just been tasked with increasing toilet usage and improving personal hygiene in East or Central African slums, your new best friend might be one who is deeply motivated to advance your cause: the local toilet paper company. Family-owned Chandaria Industries Limited (CIL) is the leading tissue, paper, and hygiene products manufacturer in East and Central Africa, according to the African Business Review. Besides fronting some of the cost of water and sewage infrastructure in the Ruaraka neighborhood of Nairobi where CIL’s headquarters is located, Chandaria Group companies have also fought for provision of decent water and sewage infrastructure for all, with an eye toward market expansion for CIL-produced goods, according to the company website...

Merry Christmas!!

This is a little late, but merry Christmas to you all!! As you can tell we're on a bit of a break over the festive period but not to worry, we'll be back in full force! Till then, I wish you all the best.

Enjoy the holiday!

Talking Point: Power struggle in Côte d'Ivoire

It seems Côte d'Ivoire is no stranger to post-election disruption and violence. After decades of bloodshed over political power struggles, one would think that a lesson would have been learnt by now. Unfortunately as recent events show, that has not been the case. Although a polite TV debate proved enough to calm tensions prior to the release of the election results, the relative calm that ensued was short lived. Despite Alassane Ouattara clearly being the winner of the elections held in November, Laurent Gbagbo has also claimed victory. Both men have been sworn in and have appointed new cabinets. Gbagbo is defiantly ignoring national and international pressure to step down, and the crisis of leadership remains.

In the long term, this issue runs deeper than stability in governance. At a time when investor confidence is growing in Africa, these tensions are likely to be a blow for the world's largest cocoa producer. Given the current state of affairs, Côte d'Ivoire is unlikely to attract the investors it seeks in order to diversify its economy.

The situation has been handled incompetently at best; it seems that after years of the same struggle, a solution remains frustratingly elusive. What are your thoughts on the issue? Why do leaders find it so difficult to let go? What structures could be put in place to prevent this from happening? Why does this problem seem to be so common in our part of the world?

An interview with Albert Ocran

Earlier this month, Albert Ocran won a Millennium Excellence Award for Inspirational Motivation. This was due in part to his fantastic work on his project 'Springboard' which he developed in cooperation with the Africa Leadership Initiative, one of Databank Foundation's programmes. You will have experienced his phenomenal motivational skills first hand as he spoke during our Leadership Conference earlier this year.

B&FT (Business and Financial Times) recently caught up with Mr Ocran and had a little interview which I would like to share with you. Enjoy!

B&FT: You have recently won a number of Awards. How do you feel about this Millennium Excellence Award in particular?
Albert: I rarely compare awards or prizes because each of them is symbolic in its own way. The MEA is a huge honour considering that it happens once every five years. I consider it a joy to serve God, country and continent with my gift. Anything I do is my own response to a divine call to duty, and any form of recognition or appreciation only serves as a bonus for doing what I would do anyway.

B&FT: Who exactly is Albert Ocran?
Albert: For someone who does so many things, it is always going to be difficult to describe oneself with one or two words. The closest summary is to call myself a “Knowledge Entrepreneur”. Every single intervention I make is about the acquisition, application and dissemination of knowledge. I am also a lay minister of the gospel and very committed to serving God with my talents, gifts and abilities.

B&FT: What are the main areas you operate in?
Albert: As a broadcaster, I host a weekly motivational radio programme called ‘Springboard, the Virtual University’ on Joy FM every Sunday from 7pm to 8pm. I also broadcast messages on personal and career development daily across the entire nation on various radio platforms. My favourite preoccupation is writing, and together with my wife Comfort I have already published 14 books with a couple more waiting to hit the shelves. We also have weekly motivational newspaper columns including the “Springboard Zone” in B&FT. As a motivational speaker, I have been able to speak on average 120 times every year for the past five years to different kinds of audiences in different countries and continents.

Sneak peek: YLMP Newsletter!!!

10 days till Christmas and it's looking like we're finally close to printing the YLMP Newsletter!! It's taken us a loong while to get here, and I'd like to thank all our contributors and those of you who've been silently (or not so silently) cheerleading all the way. I'm going to be a bit naughty and reward our blog readers with a sneak peek of the front cover! Admittedly it's not all that much - just the cover - but I hope it gets you excited about reading it nonetheless. Here it is (click on the image for a closer look):


It's packed full of great stuff including mentor and mentee's articles, poems, inspirational quotes and the chance to win Silverbird movie tickets! We're looking to get it to TYPE by the end of this week, meaning it should be ready for you towards the end of January. I'll keep you posted!

How well do YOU know the women leaders of the world?

Last week, TED held a conference for people to exchange ideas on how women and girls are reshaping the future. It was held under the event TEDWomen, the first of its kind from TED.

Inspired by their blog post of the world’s 18 female elected heads of state, Todd Summers and Veronica Weis of ONE decided to put a quiz together on the subject, and here it is for you!

1. True or False: As of 2010, Africa has only one elected female head of state.
a) True
b) False

2. President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf hails from which country?
a) Nigeria
b) Liberia
c) South Africa

3. Name the current president of India and head of the largest democracy in the world:
a) Pratibha Patil
b) Bhairon Singh Shekhawat
c) Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam

4. ________ is the world’s first woman to succeed another woman as an elected head of state.
a) Mary Robinson
b) Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh
c) Mary McAleese

5. Who followed in her father’s footsteps to become prime minister of Bangladesh?
a) Shahabuddin Ahmed
b) Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
c) Sheikh Hasina Wazed

Ghana to avoid 'oil curse'

Some good news from the World Bank via Reuters to brighten your afternoon (it certainly did mine):

Commercial oil production in Ghana is unlikely to fuel inflation, heighten corruption or wreck democratic progress in the short-term, the World Bank said as the West African state prepared to turn on the spigot next week.

Unlike many other oil-producing African nations whose oil sectors dominate the economy making them central to conflict and corruption, Ghana's oil, due to start December 15, will be dwarfed by established cocoa and mining industries and be managed by one of the region's most stable governments.

"It's a bit of oil, not a whole lot, so it's not enough to give you the Dutch disease and a curse," World Bank country director Ishac Diwan told Reuters in an interview late on Thursday, referring to a Dutch discovery of gas in the 1960s that boosted the currency, undermining other exports.

"Oil is not so big that it could just shift this country into a different political path. It's not a tsunami," he said.

Ghana expects to produce an average 120,000 barrels per day from its off-shore Jubilee field with reserves estimated at 1.5 billion barrels. Production is expected to increase to 250,000 bpd after three years -- about an eighth of what nearby Nigeria produces now -- operators of the field led by UK-listed Tullow Oil have said.

Ghana is keen to avoid the problems oil has brought to Nigeria, where rebels in motorboats have repeatedly attacked pipelines and platforms in the Niger Delta over the years, saying they are fighting against the theft of the country's oil wealth.

In November traditional chiefs of towns in Ghana's western region demanded a 10 percent share of oil revenues when crude starts flowing just offshore from their homeland -- a demand that was rejected by parliament.

Diwan said a militant insurgency was unlikely given Ghana's record for negotiation to reduce tensions.

"If a warrior emerges I don't think this person would have a following because there are reasonable chiefs that have managed to voice reasonable demands," he said.

"Institutions (in Ghana) are quite evolved and civil society is very vibrant and aware of the dangers," Diwan said.

"I just can't see big corruption happening. Hidden bank accounts in Switzerland and lots of money disappearing -- this is not Ghana. I'm broadly optimistic."

Parliament is considering a Petroleum Revenue Management Bill aimed at ensuring the sector benefits ordinary Ghanaians over the long-term and at providing a strong regulatory framework as firms explore other blocks off Ghana's coast.

In its 2011 budget, Ghana forecast the estimated $400 million of oil proceeds next year would account for only six percent of all domestic government revenues.

Diwan said government had a good system of checks and balances and that the private sector had reached an important critical mass.

However, the need to shift from subsistence to commercial agriculture in Ghana is acute as the oil industry has the potential to trigger inflation, making local products uncompetitive with imports.

"There is a lot of potential in agriculture with future prices expecting to rise and a lot of land here and the fear that agriculture can be hurt by the exchange rate appreciation due to oil," he said.

The government is investing heavily in cocoa, aiming to produce over a million tons per year by 2012 up from 632,000 tons in 2009, a level that would allow it to challenge neighbouring Ivory Coast for the title of the world's top grower.

Mini Seminar: Study Skills

On Friday we had our last Mini Seminar for the term - how time has flown! Hayford Ayerakwa spoke about study skills and how to make the most out of our learning/revision time. He based his presentation on Yaw Perbi's book A++, a copy of which he donated after he was done. We'll be adding that (and hopefully a few more) to your library once it's done. Here are some of the main points he raised (as usual, pictures can be found after the jump):

• You are responsible for your learning; be in charge!
• Plan your studies
  
• Thinking, planning and preparation are fundamental; they are worth all the time you can put into them
• The brain works on principles
• Learners do best in environments which are psychically and psychologically comfortable
• A series oh short study sessions is more beneficial than one long session
• Learners become better with practice. Adults learn best through practice and participation
• The more senses one uses in learning, they higher the probability of recall
• People learn best what they read, see, hear, say and do
• The brain must have time for things to soak in. Rest, review, note.
  
• Memory is increased when facts are associated with familiar things
  
• Learners learn best when they enjoy the learning experience
• Each learner is unique and has a unique learning style
• managing time means making good use of ever passing moment

Thanks so much to Hayford for all the insight he shared with us! Continue reading to see pictures of the session

A different approach in Burndi

For a long time, Merthus Ntahobakuriye, 53, did not think much of being drunk daily or refusing to help out with household chores. He sold the little they had to maintain his drinking habit.

"Whenever my wife went to work in the field, she would come back to find that I had sold everything I could lay my hands on. One day she got a goat from her family; I couldn't resist selling even this one," Ntahobakuriye told a meeting of women leaders in the commune of Mutimbuzi, Bujumbura-Rurale Province, which surrounds the Burundian capital, Bujumbura.

Ntahobakuriye is one of dozens of men known in Kirundi as 'Abatangamuco' (“those who shed light”). They are identified by the community and, with the help of international NGO CARE, help empower women by raising men’s awareness of gender-based violence and other practices which denigrate women.

Michelle Carter, head of CARE Burundi, told IRIN: "One of our biggest successes in Burundi has been the Abatangamuco - these men are revolutionaries, going against tradition and supporting women. It starts off with stopping the beating at home, and now some of these women are in political office. The challenge is the country needs more Abantagamuco and empowered women."

CARE runs women empowerment programmes in several provinces, focusing on psycho-social wellbeing; legal as well as cultural empowerment; and maternal health.

The 'Abatangamuco' programme, according to Nicedore Nkurunziza, a capacity-building officer for CARE Burundi, was established two years ago to empower women by getting "reformed" men to testify before the community, and in the process get more men to emulate their changed behaviour.

"This approach is interesting because it gets men to know that they can change their ways," she said. "Even the government has found this approach useful and sometimes calls on the Abatangamuco to testify on social issues such as marriage and what it entails."

A turn for the better

For Ntahobakuriye, life took a turn for the better when he heard one of these reformed men, from another commune, tell his story.

Plans for a Pan-African University

An interesting (albeit lengthy) article from SciDev.net:

Plans for a university that will stretch across Africa and be a "flagship institution of higher education" will go ahead, despite political problems with two of its five planned centres, African Union commissioner and steward of the project, Jean-Pierre Ezin has insisted.

The Pan-African University (PAU), which was proposed by the African Union (AU) in 2008, is expected to offer advanced graduate training and postgraduate research opportunities for "the cream of the crop" of African students, according to a draft concept note produced at the time.

But making the dream a reality has been problematic. One of the main difficulties has been reaching agreement over which countries, and which institutes within those countries, will host its five nodes, as the regional hubs are to be called.

Local difficulties

The University of Lagos in Nigeria has been chosen as the West Africa node, specialising in earth and life sciences. Kenya will host the East Africa node, covering basic sciences, technology and innovation, at a university yet to be announced.

A Central Africa hub in Cameroon will specialise in social and human sciences and governance, and may be based at the University of Yaounde II, where a Pan-African Institute of University Governance already exists.

But the site of the Southern Africa node remains disputed, and a political tussle has broken out over the North Africa node, which was originally awarded to Algeria, but now Libya — the African Union's largest donor — is staking a claim.

"We are trying to push ahead with the nodes in Cameroon, Nigeria and Kenya, but we are facing some problems with the nodes for North and Southern Africa," says Ezin, the AU Commissioner for Human Resources, Science and Technology.

"But we will make a start with the Pan-African University in September 2011 with the existing nodes. This is the timetable set up by the African Union Commission and we are working on it now."

The five nodes were originally supposed to be operating from September this year, but the disputes have caused the deadline to slip.

SEND-Ghana have won the 2010 ONE Africa Award. Congratulations to them! Visit their website here, or click here for more information from ONE.