African Leadersh ip Institute Newsletter November 2008 www.thenamibiandream.info/ ali
[email protected] o Tel: +264 (0)61 250 229 Fax: +264 (0)61 250 243 A word from the founder Dear Friends,
Looking back over the past year, I can only thank God for His faithfulness in sustaining and growing the African Leadership Institute. On the 18th of September we held our second annual graduation ceremony at Safari Court, where we had the privilege of graduating 150 students who attended our various schools during 2007 and 2008. The Institute is picking up momentum as individuals in the government, church and business sector complete the course and start influencing those around them. We have received several heartening testimonies of the positive change that the African Leadership Institute has produced in the lives of many graduates.
In September we hosted our inaugural International School. This school consisted of 8 participants from Zambia, the Central African Republic, Congo and Namibia. This school was a step of faith. We believe that there is a great need in our entire continent for leaders with character and the necessary skills, and our vision is to reach far into Africa with leadership development.
I am also excited about the prospects for the coming year. We are expanding our current strategy of conducting Principal, Junior and Student schools to include schools for Teachers and School Inspectors. I believe that with this new approach we will have the opportunity to touch the entire education system: from inspectors and principals right down to teachers and pupils (at our youth camps). This will play a crucial role in developing our upcoming leaders in Namibia in order to effect sustained transformation.
I thank you for your support during 2008 and urge you to continue taking hands with the African Leadership Institute in order to develop successful leaders in our communities.
Kind regards, Dawie Fourie
How will we transform Namibia? We will reach our goal by influencing the hearts and minds of identified leaders to know themselves, their God-given calling and responsibilities, and then to accept ownership of their responsibilities and the challenges of Africa and beyond.
We also aim to build strong characters who can sustain and endure the pressure of positions, failures and successes. At the same time we need to develop certain skills in these leaders: the ability to cast vision, build strong teams and to ultimately get the job done.
We should finally build the trained leader (brick) in a system (wall) of accountability and transparency to ensure sustainability, ongoing development, duplication and growth. These leaders need to understand the importance of prioritised relationships and a balanced lifestyle.
Principal schools 2008 was the second of the three year sponsorship by Old Mutual Principal Academy for the Principal schools. This sponsorship has already resulted in 79 school principals completing the training, with the fourth school (P004) starting this month. Each school is comprised of leaders from all thirteen regions of Namibia.
Mr. Bertus Gous has used his decades of experience as principal and inspector in order to adapt the leadership curriculum successfully to the specific needs of school principals. Many of the principals who have completed the training have expressed their gratitude for the existence of this course, as several of them were promoted to the influential position of principal without receiving the necessary training. We believe that our Principal schools supply these principals with the opportunity to acquire those skills they lack as well as network with principals from all the other regions.
Junior schools The Junior schools are comprised of young leaders and executives from the government, business and church. The African Leadership Institute has completed five Junior schools, training 80 upcoming leaders in the process. We have received good reports from these graduates as well as their managers about the positive changes that this course has brought in their leadership styles. When young leaders choose to implement the principles that they learn at the Leadership Institute, they develop into leaders who make a difference.
Student schools The past two years we had the privilege of training 36 students from UNAM and Polytechnic, with the aid of the Pinnacle Metropolitan Trust. The curriculum for the Student schools is adapted to suit the needs of young adults who find themselves at the start of their careers. These students, studying in a variety of fields, are required to write a detailed action plan by the end of the three weeks of intensive training. In this action plan they need to map out the steps they will take for continued growth in all the spheres of their lives, including relationships, career, finances, spiritual and ongoing growth. It is a great opportunity for these young adults to discover their purpose at such an early stage of their lives.
International school On 22 September 8 students from all over Africa arrived at the Rock Lodge for our first International school. Different from the other schools, these students enjoyed 3 weeks of uninterrupted leadership training. During this time they also had to read the 5 books on leadership prescribed by the African Leadership Institute and complete their action plans. Even though it was an intense time for these leaders, they indicated that they learnt much and were inspired to duplicate our method of leadership development in their own nations.
We firmly believe that the International school will experience exponential growth in the upcoming years as we enlarge our focus from Namibia to the continent. Our aim is to duplicate the African Leadership Institute in many key African nations in order to effect transformation by training up solid leaders.
S.T.E.P. Program We are about to complete our first short-term exposure program called S.T.E.P. (short for Service, Training, Experience and Preparation). Our first intake of 4 students has undergone discipleship and leadership training, they served the Rock Ministries and other ministries, they received vocational exposure in their areas of interest and they planned and carried out an outreach to Ondangwa. The amount they have grown is apparent, and we are glad to know that they have all completed their actions plans and now have more clarity about their individual purposes.
Graduation ceremony Our second graduation ceremony, held at Safari Court on 18 September, was a great success. This elegant dinner was attended by more than 500 guests, including several government ministers and ambassadors. The African Leadership Institute had the pleasure of graduating 150 students who completed the training in 2007 and 2008. These students also fulfilled the other prerequisites for graduating: they completed all the questionnaires and maintained a mentoring relationship with a mentor and two protégés. A number of graduates were given the opportunity to give a short testimony of what the leadership training has meant in their lives.
The keynote address for this ceremony was delivered by the Honorary Willem Konjore, Minister of Youth, National Service, Sports & Culture on behalf of the Honorary Nangolo Mbumba, Minister of Education. The full speech can be viewed on our website by clicking here.
Our plans for 2009 Our calendar for 2009 comprises a full 31 weeks of training. This consists of 3 Principal schools, 3 Student schools, 2 Junior schools, a 3-week International school and 6 weekend marriage seminars. As mentioned above, we are expanding our focus on the educational system by including 2 Teacher schools. The Teacher and Principal schools work in conjunction with the Rock Training Centre, where pupils from the principal and teachers’ schools are also taught the principles of the African Leadership Institute. If you would like to nominate an emerging or established leader for one of the courses in 2009, please contact our office at (061) 250 229.
We have great plans for the future and believe that the African Leadership Institute will have a significant impact on the continent of Africa. As John Maxwell says: ‘Everything rises and falls with leadership.’ We value your input and support, as well as that of the church, the business sector and the government. Just recently we received a letter from the Secretary to Cabinet, Mr. Frans H. Kapofi, in which he stated: ‘I believe that the Institute will, indeed, continue to play a meaningful role in preparing our leaders in various spheres of activities and to help them make constructive contributions to sustained socio-economic development in Namibia.’ What our lecturers say… The African Leadership Institute is a great initiative. It has succeeded in bringing together leaders from government, business and churches and to train them to transform Namibia, and Africa. The training is special for Africa and tailored to address Africa’s specific needs. I have heard great testimonies from the graduates of the Institute. This initiative needs more support from businesses to sponsor many more leaders to be a part of this transforming experience. I thank God for the role of Dawie, the founder, and his wife Chrisna, for their commitment and sacrifice. Immanuel Dumeni Chairperson of Transformation Namibia and Deputy Chairperson of African Leadership Institute Former Under Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister
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