The local chapter of the Young African Leaders Initiative (Yali) Alumni network will on Saturday hold a charity-pronged meet-up in Old Marimba Park, Harare, to plan for a better 2019 programmes year.
By Style Reporter
Running under the theme Starting strong and ending strong, the meeting, which is supported by the Yali Regional Leadership Centre and the United States embassy, will see young progressive minds from across Zimbabwe reflecting on their strides in 2018, planning for the year ahead and making some donations to a local children’s home.
Yali Zimbabwe Chapter coordinator Takemore Mazuruse said there was no better way to cap what had been a challenging and equally exciting year than through this charitable meet-up.
“As the local chapter of this highly progressive continental youth network, we believe it is important that we meet, network and share ideas at the same time reflecting on our strides in 2018,” he said.
“Equally important is that we plan for 2018 together while also sparing a thought for the less-privileged within our communities through some donations to a children’s home in Mufakose.”
Mazuruse said as young people, they felt compelled to play their part in national development through engaging in various initiatives that could help foster development while ending economic and social exclusion.
“The training we undergo at the Yali Leadership Training Centre is all-encompassing in that it covers various tracks, including public management which has to do with governance, entrepreneurship which promotes self-sustenance, and civic leadership, which awakens us to the societal ills and challenges communities face,” he said.
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True to Mazuruse’s pointer, various Yali alumni in Zimbabwe are involved in thriving enterprises, some running effective civil society organisations while others are playing a critical role in governance through holding public offices.
One of the Yali alumni and Signs of Hope director, Samantha Sibanda, whose disability rights organisation has been involved in a number of advocacy and community development issues targeting the disabled, said the end of year meet-up was very much in order.
“We have covered a lot of ground during the course of the year through training as well as availing material and psycho-social social support for those with disabilities,” she said.
“We have also delivered a petition to Parliament around domestication of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in partnership with Deaf Women Included (DFI). We are, therefore, encouraged to meet with fellow alumni and reflect on the year gone.”
According to the youth organisation’s networking and events coordinator, Saymore Masaisai, the Saturday meet-up is also open to non-alumni who want to know more about Yali.
“Yali continues to select young leaders for training at the Regional Leadership Centre in South Africa as well as in America under the Mandela Washington Fellowship,” he said.
