Impact Stories & Blogs

by Harun Mwadena, Cohort 30, Kenya I was a street boy. I grew up poor a good part of my childhood, in the far interior of coast province, in a small village called, Ifunda in Kambe-Ribe Ward of Kilifi County in Kenya. After failing to join university in 2016 for lack of fees, I came across the YALI RLC EA U-Learn online courses. I had a hunger for knowledge and a great desire to serve humanity even as a street boy in Mombasa struggling to make end meets. I completed 20 courses in civic leadership. I had found my purpose. I wanted to transform my society and create sustainable impact. In 201...

Yonas Alemayehu, Cohort 27, Ethiopia This small house is neither my grandmother’s house, nor my relatives in a small rural village. This is the Oromia Regional State Attorney General, Omo Beyyam District Office. My office is located in a rural village called Dalota,100km from the city. The only means of travel is a motor bike, which I ride for 24km over a mountain road covered with tiny sharp rocks, making it hard to travel through. My office village is behind in civilization, there is no water, electricity, internet access, transport and restaurants. Moreover, the village is extremely col...

by Ayesiga Herbert, Cohort 30, Uganda   I am a Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals and Transgender (LGBT) activist, researcher and social worker by profession. I am currently working at Icebreakers Uganda, a non-profit support organization for LGBT persons focused on sexual health rights and advocacy, community mobilization for HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention for all LGBT persons. My career has progressed through a series of promotions leading up to my current position as a Program Director.   I pioneered the first research on mental health within the LGBT community in Uganda through the See th...

    by Yaffet Girum Tesfaye, Cohort 27, Ethiopia   I broke YALI RLC EA’s all-time Microsoft Office Certification record by scoring 936 out of 1000 on my Microsoft PowerPoint Examination. At 20 years old, I am also the only alumnus who has ever done and successfully passed the four main Microsoft certification examinations; PowerPoint, Word, Excel and Access.   When I joined YALI RLC EA program, I did not expect to leave with four Microsoft certifications. I had joined to be empowered in my role in youth advocacy. I am a student of Computer Science and Engineering, a man of many te...

By Ambrose Kamya, Uganda, Cohort 31 In Uganda, this is just one of the thousands of both told and untold stories of women and girls violated annually. According to the Uganda Demographic survey (2017), over 56% of women in Uganda have ever experienced sexual violence. This has led to death and poor reproductive health of women and girls thus preventing them from achieving a better life. However, the existing solutions mainly address sensitization and post-violence reporting thus leaving survivors with limited options to seek urgent help when being violated. I decided to do something about i...

By Michelle-Rita, Kenya, Cohort 26. On 10th April 2019, MasterCard Foundation in collaboration with YALI Regional Leadership Center East Africa (YALI RLC EA) and Ashesi University put up a forum for young professionals from different industry sectors to exchange ideas and experiences. Thirty-five YALI RLC EA alumni graced the event all the way from Cohort 1 to Cohort 31. There was a panel discussion, “The Future of Work & Growing your experience in your career through mentorship”. The panel was comprised of a multi-generational set of experts from vastly diverse industries. A common...

By Shakiib Mustafe Ahmed, Somalia, Cohort 29 In the last few years, I had been contemplating what to do with my life. I wanted to become a leader, make an impact and be the voice of the voiceless. I had no idea how to approach this burning desire in me. I knew I needed to make a difference, not just to myself but also to the country that I truly love. After many sleepless nights of pondering over this idea, I decided that I will start my journey by taking on an initiative or a course that would help me in these areas that I desperately wanted to succeed. After intensive research on initiativ...

by Heidi Mumia, Kenya, Cohort 2 My YALI RLC EA story begins at age 33 when I got accepted into the program. I was at a fairly advanced stage in my career having accumulated work experience of about 8 years. Though I was working hard and had a few achievements in my name, I felt I was not fulfilling my purpose. I had a burning desire to impact the community I worked in. My journey of transformation began with self-discovery. At the Center, a number of sessions have been designed for participants to master themselves, their purpose and ability. Before I joined the program, my interests were a...

Carolyne Kamau, Kenya, Cohort 1 I was heavily involved in the arts as a dancer and as an actress in a community-based youth group and an international dance movement respectively. I was in my fourth year of undergraduate in Law School at the University of Nairobi. I held a few leadership positions as the organizing secretary, chairlady, choreographer and a lead facilitator.  I was also actively engaged in peer education, an avenue through which I practiced most of my leadership skills to become a sought after facilitator because of my sense of understanding, self-drive, proactivity, and inn...

Julie Munyi Ogwapit, Kenya, Cohort 2 2015 was a tumultuous year for me. I was employed and doing fine but at the same time, I was a little bored and restless and dreaming of doing something more meaningful and impactful with my life. I began working on a business plan for a soft and life skills training program for kids and started exploring options to elevate my skill set.  It was during this time that I came across an advertisement for the YALI RLC EA program.  The description appealed to me particularly the transformational leadership element and the opportunity to develop and refine my...