African leadership development now has a new hub: Leadership Lab Yetu.
Yetu is a cutting-edge pan-African initiative bringing together multigenerational leaders, equipping them with the skills and insight needed to navigate complexity, unlock opportunity, and shape governance for a more prosperous Africa.
Leadership Lab Yetu is committed to diversifying African leadership by engaging experienced and emerging leaders in the exchange of knowledge, expertise, and wisdom.
Africa boasts a youthful, energetic, and rapidly growing population, with more than 60% under the age of 25. By 2100, it’s projected that 40% of the world’s population will be in Africa. It’s clear that what we do in the next 10 years will shape the next 100.
While this represents a powerful force for innovation and growth, the current reality is that young people aren’t growing up in environments that are keeping pace with their aspirations. The youth surge is outpacing job creation and state capacity; underemployment, weak education systems, and limited health access persist due to unresponsive and exclusionary governance systems. Many policies and services are outdated and ill-equipped to deal with the complexities of today’s world, whether it’s climate change or the rise of artificial intelligence (AI).
Leadership Lab Yetu is built for this moment.
Founded by Monica Geingos, Former First Lady of the Republic of Namibia, the name Yetu — meaning “ours” in Swahili — represents a vision to create an inclusive space where Africans across generations can collaborate.
Its multifaceted approach includes the International Leadership Accelerator, a 12-month flagship program offering emerging and established leaders the opportunity to co-design robust policy solutions and trial these through cutting-edge policy labs. Yetu will also be a leading resource on advocacy, youth inclusion, and demographic trends through the publication of informed research, and facilitate summits for international leaders to convene and interrogate leadership models and policy reforms.
Ultimately, Yetu is creating future-ready governance that harnesses Africa’s incredible demographic strength. It wants to see intergenerational leadership norms become embedded in governance systems, and policymakers implement data-driven, youth-responsive solutions for unlocking Africa’s potential.
Learn more about our mission and leadership team, and follow us on this journey to make African governance and leadership truly diverse, inclusive, and equitable.