One of Obama’s biggest commitments in Africa was to mentor entrepreneurship among its future leaders. In 2010, he launched the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI) to help youth on the continent prepare for leadership by providing training, networking, and skills.
The Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders, the flagship program of the Young African Leaders Initiative, best defines the Obama legacy in Africa, according to Simbo Olorunfemi, a Nigerian communications consultant:
It is in choosing to touch the lives of young Africans, raising leaders and entrepreneurs who can impact lives and widen the net of impact that Obama leaves a legacy in Africa. It is in the symbolism of the audacity of hope that he planted a seed in the heart of many young Africans. It is the grace and panache with which he carried himself, going high when it was easy to go low, that he leaves a legacy for the world about the African spirit. There is so much that he could have done. There is so much that is left to be done. But he did do his bit. And I dare say, he did it well, as well. Obama has lit a lamp of hope in the hearts of many a young African. It might not be that visible at the moment but do not bet against its impact tomorrow.
Source: BBC, The Guardian
