Memoirs of a Mandela Washington Fellow
By Dipo Adesida
One random September morning in 2014, I was on vacation. And as part of my leisure routine, I was connecting to social media to catch a glimpse of the world: an airbrushed selfie here, a scandal there, amid the furore of tweets, news, memes, ad campaigns, cyber bullying and what not.
It seemed like any other day.
It could have been any other day except for the Facebook post I saw on my friend’s Facebook page.
It was a call for entries for a Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders.
Initially, I would have passed it off as one of those United Nations vacancy ads that travel around the Internet with opportunities in weird places like Burundi, Comoros Islands and Sambisa, vacancies nobody I ever knew qualified for.
But this post was different.
It had a ring of formality to it.
And for the first time in a very long time, I met all the criteria. I wasn’t too old or too qualified.
I clicked and followed through on the application. And even though it cost me several hours and a chunk of my precious family time, much to the chagrin of my family. But after what seemed like forever, I submitted it before the application closed. Even though I had high hopes, I didn’t worry much about it.
About 3 months after, I was called for an interview and on a sunny day in March, 2015, I was alerted that I’d been selected as a Mandela Washington Fellow.
I was mildly elated until I realised that out of 30,000 applications, only 500 were taken and I was one of them. Then I was overjoyed.
THE PROGRAM
As much as meeting President Barack Obama is the cream on the pie, the Mandela Washington Fellowship can at best be described as a life changing experience: academic sessions, workshops, leadership simulations, traveling extensively across the US, integration into American culture, networking with high profile public office holders and business people, and fellow Africans with an unrivalled passion for success fuelled my return to continue to make a difference.
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The fellowship is organized along three tracks: Public Management, Civic Leadership, and Business & Entrepreneurship depending on fellows’ areas of greatest social impact. Some of the components of the program include:
Academic Sessions. This includes 6 weeks of understanding the principles of entrepreneurship, the business environment, law, financing, supply chain, workshops and various for.
Grant Funding: Fellows will have the opportunity to apply for grants for their various businesses. This is highly competitive pitch and successful applicants get up to $25,000 to fund their projects.
Peer Collaborators : Young entrepreneurs with similar age and interest meet with fellows in both formal and informal settings; peers will be paired with like-minded individuals and establish a connection that allows them to meet both on a professional and personal level.
Mentors: Experienced business owners and entrepreneurs meet with the fellows on a weekly basis to discuss business strategies, and develop individual leadership plans.
Site Visits Providers: Fellows get the opportunity to visit businesses that complements their areas of interest.
Workshop Facilitator: These offer a two to three hour workshop in one of the following areas: US History of Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Technology, Convergence of business, government and civil sectors, conducting market research & public relations, manufacturing, distribution and intellectual property, finance, microfinance, crowd funding, accounting, investments, leadership and ethics.
Dinner Hosts on Friday nights for four fellows are paired with a resident family and become a quasi-American family throughout the program.
Above all, the Mandela Washington Fellowship was a great opportunity to revalidate some old truths – that things only happen when you do more and talk less.
Looking back, I am so grateful to God that I didn’t pay lip service so something that seemed so casual. Little did I know that my ticket to the White House was waiting for me on Facebook.
I encourage all young Africans between the ages of 25 – 35 to apply for this life changing opportunity.
For more information, visit www.yali.state.gov
Dipo Adesida
CREATIVE DIRECTOR
VERDANT ZEAL GROUP
Nigeria. Ghana. Gambia
