ALI South Africa

ALI South Africa is one of the Africa Leadership Initiatives divisions. It currently comprises of 11 Fellowship classes with 208 Fellows—this is in addition to Fellows in West Africa, East Africa, and Mozambique.

The Fellows are men and women between the ages of 35 and 50, who are successful in their fields of influence. 60% of these Fellows come from the business sector, while 20% are derived from government, and the remaining 20%, from civil society organizations. These Fellows are committed to promoting – and personally exemplifying — effective, values-based leadership in their countries.

The Fellows in South Africa are selected by a Selection Committee who applies a crafted criterion for a balanced class of differing viewpoints — a class that will stimulate constructive debates.

Program Structure

Each class of 22 ALI Fellows will be chosen from a pool of candidates nominated by ALI Fellows. The two-year program is comprised of

1. a structured series of four seminars—16 days in total—under the guidance of skilled senior moderators along with
2. a required community project of each Fellow’s own design and choosing and
3. occasional, optional opportunities to participate in gatherings with fellows and distinguished guests.

Nomination Procedures

Nominations of Fellows are open between the 1st of August and the 30th of November each year. Candidates must be between the ages of 35 and 50 and should be established leaders in their businesses, civil society and government sectors. They must be willing to leverage on their success to have a significant impact in Africa.

Fellows are nominated to enrol into the ALI Fellowship Programme by recognised leaders of business and community organisations, or by Fellows in the ALI Alumni Network. Nominators are asked to complete the attached nomination form stating reasons for recommending the candidate, with a special focus on:

1. the candidate’s leadership and entrepreneurial experience,
2. his/her potential influence or impact on the African continent, and
3. why they think this is the right time in the nominee’s life and career to participate in the programme.