Read all about the work YALI AFRICA ALUMNI are doing in their communities in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

RLC Southern Africa

Alumnus of Cohort 2 from Angola started a COVID-19 awareness campaign across different towns in Angola. Joaquim together with four other YALI RLC Southern Africa alumni have partnered with the Red Cross of Angola and the Association of Students of Private Universities of Angola (AEUPA) to disseminate World Health Organisation (WHO) Guidelines on the prevention of COVID-19 with local communities. The campaign includes training multiple volunteers on how to handle suspected cased of COVID-19 and was rolled out in heavily transited markets in Luanda and will be extended to Viana. 

Joaquim Caiombo

An Alumnus of Online Cohort 3 from Mauritius and is working to promote mental wellness during the COVID-19 pandemic. In partnership with other young active citizens, Anjinsen has organized multiple online wellness webinars hosting renowned experts from across the world to share their work and experience on the topic. In one of the webinars “Stay Safe, Stay Sane” a clinical psychologist spoke about how COVID-19 can affect one’s psycho-somatic levels and demonstrated ways to bring down stress and improve mental health. To date, the feedback from over 50 participants have been overwhelmingly positive. Anjinsen says he will continue to host the webinars and work on increasing participation.

Anjinsen Vlamootoo

RLC Eastern Africa

Cohort 17 Alumnus from Uganda created a WhatsApp group to unite nurses and midwives in Kampala in the midst of the evolving COVID-19 pandemic. The objectives of the group are to share challenges and brainstorm solutions around COVID-19 and create a safe space for nurses and midwives in Kampala to share resources, opportunities, and research around the prevention of COVID-19. Lastly, the group organises carpools to and from work because transportation have been the highest challenge faced during the pandemic.

Tracy Kobukindo

An alumnus of Cohort 34 from Kenya, apart from educating the “Boda-Boda” drivers on COVID-19 precautionary measures such as hand washing techniques and the use of sanitizing gels, he’s also increased the production and distribution of hand sanitizer through his company, Sapma Enterprise. Nathaniel shares that through his partnership with Ushirika, Shafoc and Polydevolpment they’ve donated hand sanitizers and improved sinks (public hand-washing stations) to decrease the spread of the virus.

Nathaniel Magembe

YALI RLC East Africa Ethiopia Alumni Chapter have been sharing free online courses (including YALI Network courses) with their members to encourage learning during COVID-19 self-isolation and to refresh the skills they received during the YALI training. 

YALI RLC East Africa Ethiopia Alumni Chapter

RLC West Africa - Dakar

YALI Alumni of Guinea – Through the YALI RLC Alumni Network of Dakar (RASYD), Guinean RLC and Mandela Washington Fellowship  Alumni have joined forces to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. They develop and distribute hand washing kits to community members in the Dabompa Plateau and Cimenterie T8 markets, as well as a local orphanage called Foyer de Esperance.

YALI Alumni of Guinea

RLC West Africa - Accra

YALI RLC Alumni Chapter Cohort 16 from Sierra Leone came together to celebrate Independence Day through a day of community service. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the group decided to organize a sensitization campaign targeting the Popda and Asker Amputee Camps, Robuya Village, and the Turn Table Market in Central Makeni. The group also provided beneficiaries with a set of veronica buckets, soaps, and hand sanitizers.

YALI RLC Alumni Chapter Cohort 16

An Alumni from Nigeria who is raising funds during the COVID-19 pandemic to support over 140 households in slum areas and underserved communities in Makoko, Mushin and Oke-ira in Nigeria. Through her organization, Iranwo Foundation, and in partnership with The Butterfly Foundation, she distributed donations of between $15 – $50 to over 140 families (depending on family size). She says, “In these dire moments, the aim is to survive, and to ensure that as many who are staying locked in to avoid dying from COVID-19 are not killed by hunger”. Additionally, Oluwafunmilayo collaborated with SI4DEV, a community development organization, to print posters and banners in the local Yoruba, Egun and Pidgin English languages to educate communities on COVID-19 prevention practices.

Oluwafunmilayo Oni