AFS Intercultural Programs is proud to announce the selection of 10 outstanding young leaders for the Youth Assembly Impact Program for Africa – The Sir Cyril Taylor Young African Leaders Program. With grant support from the Cyril Taylor Charitable Foundation, this initiative is designed to empower young changemakers from Sub-Saharan Africa with the skills, resources, and funding needed to drive sustainable development in their communities. This is the second generation of scholarship winners for the Young African Leaders Program, as this program was first launched in 2025.
The 10 winners who have demonstrated exceptional leadership and commitment to sustainable development are:
Aramide Kayode | Nigeria
Ishmael Bonsu Nyame | Ghana
Elvira Immaculate Khwatenge | Kenya
John Ofori | Ghana
Elapo Trigu | Malawi
Safaa Garelnabi | Uganda
Bidias A Zock Manuela Andrea | Cameroon
Gift Komilogbon | Nigeria
Charmaine Musetsho | South Africa
Kativa Maria Shihako | Namibia
Find out more about their work in their short bios below.
This year’s scholarship program received an overwhelming response, with almost 6,000 applications submitted. The most common Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) focus areas among applicants were: SDG 4: Quality Education, SDG 13: Climate Action, SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being.
The 10 selected Sir Cyril Taylor Young African Changemakers will embark on a transformative journey that includes:
Leadership Development Workshops: Equipping participants with the skills and knowledge to maximize their experience at the AFS Youth Assembly.
Participation in the AFS Youth Assembly (August 12-14, 2026, Geneva): Networking with global leaders, innovators, and peers. Changemakers will receive special recognition at the Closing Ceremony.
Post-Program Impact Projects with Seed Funding: Upon returning home, each Changemaker will lead a community workshop reaching at least 100 young people and initiate an impact project with seed funding, supported by the AFS Youth Assembly Impact Network.
Congratulations to the scholarship winners. The incredible impact they will create in their communities and beyond will be featured in further communications.
Meet the Winners
Aramide Kayode | Nigeria
Aramide Kayode is a social impact leader and the Founder of Talent Mine Academy, a free school in Ota, Nigeria, providing 15 years of high-quality education to children from families earning less than $10 monthly. A Harvard Graduate School of Education alumna and former Teach For Nigeria fellow, Aramide walked away from a career in investment banking to address Nigeria’s out-of-school child crisis. To date, her leadership has impacted over 300 students through a problem-based curriculum that has birthed 39 community-led projects, ranging from solar prototypes to water filtration systems, effectively equipping the next generation to break the cycle of poverty.
Ishmael Bonsu Nyame | Ghana
Ishmael Bonsu Nyame is a Ghanaian scholar, journalist, and community organizer dedicated to amplifying African perspectives on migration and governance. As the founder of Ghana Curates and the West African Youth Governance Dialogue, he bridges the gap between creative storytelling and regional policy, drawing on his academic background as a Northwestern and Schwarzman Scholar. Driven by his lived experience as the son of a refugee, Ishmael uses deliberative democracy and youth-led advocacy to ensure that African youth are not just subjects of global conversations, but active architects of the policies that shape their mobility and future.
Elvira Immaculate Khwatenge | Kenya
Elvira Immaculate Khwatenge is a Kenyan computer science lecturer and learning designer working at the intersection of emerging technology and youth wellbeing. She co-founded OKA4School, a “baking therapy” initiative that supports vulnerable learners through community commerce, while also developing low-cost quantum science kits for under-resourced schools. By blending advanced STEM education with practical, dignity-focused community support, Elvira empowers young Africans to see technology not as an abstract concept, but as a tool to solve real-world challenges in health, agriculture, and education.
John Ofori | Ghana
John Ofori is a technology ecosystem builder and CEO of Rethink Africa Intelligence, an AI-focused platform dedicated to strengthening the continent’s innovation and policy landscape. Through leadership roles with the IoT Network Hub and the British Council, he has spearheaded digital skills training for young innovators while advocating for locally-driven AI solutions and African data sovereignty. A prominent voice in Africa’s digital transformation, John focuses on shifting the continent from a passive consumer of technology to an active leader in the design and governance of the global digital economy.
Elapo Trigu | Malawi
Elapo Trigu is a Malawian graduate and advocate for inclusive development who focuses on bridging the digital divide through human-centered design. With a background in mentoring through Girl Up and supporting smallholder farmers, she addresses the systemic barriers—such as language and access—that keep marginalized communities from thriving in a digital world. Elapo is committed to reshaping technology to fit the lived realities of everyday people, ensuring that digital tools serve as approachable pathways to empowerment rather than intimidating barriers to entry.
Safaa Garelnabi | Uganda
Safaa Garelnabi is a public health professional and co-founder of Hope Springs Health Foundation, dedicated to advancing reproductive health and gender equality in underserved Ugandan communities. Holding advanced degrees from Monash and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, she has reached over 2,000 young people through innovative programs like “Sugar Daddy Awareness Classes” and gender-based violence prevention. Safaa’s work focuses on removing systemic health barriers, ensuring that adolescent girls have the knowledge and resources to make informed decisions and remain in school.
Bidias A Zock Manuela Andrea | Cameroon
Bidias A Zock Manuela Andrea is a peacebuilder and policy researcher whose work is rooted in her personal survival of conflict and displacement in Cameroon. She founded the Cameroon Students for Peace Network (CAMSUP), a movement of 500 volunteers working to reduce hate speech, and currently serves as a researcher for the African Union Commission on migration. A bilingual leader who authored a nationally adopted civic education manual, Bidias is dedicated to building global platforms for youth-led peacebuilding and ensuring that young voices are central to regional stability and policy.
Gift Komilogbon | Nigeria
Gift Komilogbon is a Nigerian educator and the founder of MINDA, a youth-led organization focused on improving mental health literacy across African schools. After discovering the transformative power of education in her own life, she dedicated herself to providing marginalized youth with the vocabulary and tools to navigate emotional struggles. Through MINDA, Gift has directly engaged over 4,000 students across five states, distributing culturally relevant mental health toolkits and fostering environments where purpose and wellbeing are prioritized alongside academic success.
Charmaine Musetsho | South Africa
Charmaine Musetsho is a South African youth leader and founder of the Majestic Discourse Debate Academy, which empowers rural students in the Vhembe region through critical thinking and public speaking. A scholar of Indigenous Knowledge Systems and a TheirWorld Global Youth Ambassador, she bridges the gap between local community needs and international advocacy platforms. Charmaine is committed to building sustainable educational systems that amplify underrepresented voices, ensuring that talent in rural communities is met with the global opportunities it deserves.
Kativa Maria Shihako | Namibia
Kativa Maria Shihako is a pioneering electrical engineer and the first female graduate in her field from Mausivi Village in Namibia’s Kavango region. Having overcome a childhood without electricity, she now serves as a Green Hydrogen Youth Ambassador and an award-winning researcher in energy innovation. Kativa uses her engineering expertise to develop practical, community-centered power solutions, proving that lived experience—combined with technical excellence—can bring light, dignity, and sustainable opportunity to Africa’s most underserved rural areas.
