“Enriched minds will collectively find solutions to all other problems. Enriched minds come from quality education.” — Charles Waigi, Founding Board Member, Asante Africa
Ten years ago, Asante Africa Foundation was founded on the belief “that education transforms worlds.” Since then, we have introduced and deepened several programs in over 15 counties and regions in Kenya and Tanzania and have impacted over 360,000 lives, directly and indirectly.
How did we measure up last year?
The impact that the foundation has been able to make did not happen spontaneously. Asante Africa’s impact has been 10 years in the making.
Just as in previous years, 2016 was about deepening the growth and increasing the opportunities for our young people and the family in their lives, while building upon achievements that have led us to where we are today. While creating impact, it is important that each beneficiary also be an active participant. The 278 scholars are already actively creating positive change in their communities. A fine example is Samson Nyongesa, who joined Asante Africa in 2008 just received an Economics degree from the University of Nairobi and has started an organization called “Life Transformers” as his way of paying it forward. His organization has already impacted over 7,000 children in elementary schools, orphanages, and refugee camps.
We are committed to furthering the United Nations Sustainable Development goals through our programs. Goal 8, “to promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all” is embodied in our Leadership and Entrepreneurship Incubator Program, providing young people with skills needed to plan and achieve a successful future in the outside world. The program has empowered over 180,000 youth through projects like leadership and peer to peer mentoring clubs, youth based businesses, and community NGOs.
Accelerated Learning in the Classroom Programs are revolutionizing the way teachers engage with their students while equipping classrooms with digital resources and low cost teaching materials to prepare students for a changing world.
The Girls’ Advancement (Wezesha Vijana) Program has created an astoundingly positive impact. Over 9,400 girls have been directly impacted because of the program, which provides innovative solutions to teaching girls about their health, their rights, and the economic skills they need to build a prosperous future. In 2016, the United Nations Girls’ Education Initiative (UNGEI) recognized Wezesha Vijana as a promising practice in girls’ education and gender equality. This acknowledgment speaks to the program’s innovative solutions to teaching girls about their health, their rights, and the skills they will need to build a stable future.
As we continue to grow and impact more people and communities, we stay focused on working from the ground up. As Chairman Waigi says, “Successful initiatives born out of the roots of community will always better integrate the cultural facets of strategic and realistic implementation that externally born solutions.”
Our bigger vision? To impact 1 million lives by 2020.
“While we are proud of success, now our organization is more essential than ever,” says CEO Erna Grasz. “There is another wave of youth seeking their opportunities to learn, to practice, to help their families and to be the change makers in their communities.”
2017, we’ve got our eyes set on you!
Click here to view or download a copy of Asante Africa’s 2016 Impact Report!
