This is a proposal to earmark $5,000 in grant capital to pilot a partnership with Ashoka, in which they distribute grants to young African social entrepreneurs on our behalf.

Why is this work necessary?

Across Africa, young social entrepreneurs are tackling challenges in education, health, agriculture, equity, infrastructure, and climate resilience. However, many need funding to focus fully on their work or to develop and scale their solutions.

While Kwanda has the funds to support these entrepreneurs, creating our own talent discovery and support system would be costly and duplicate existing efforts. Ashoka has a strong track record and an extensive network of African social entrepreneurs, providing an efficient platform to identify, support, and monitor grant recipients.

The solution

We're proposing a partnership with Ashoka to leverage their expertise in:

• Identifying qualified young changemakers

• Managing grant distribution and recipient support

• Delivering detailed reports on grant outcomes.

Who is Ashoka?

Ashoka was founded in 1980 and is the organisation that coined the term “social entrepreneurship”. The organisation established a framework that recognizes individuals who develop system-changing solutions to address societal problems on a large scale. The individuals become Ashoka Fellows, 3500 of them.

80% of Fellows have influenced national policy or had their ideas replicated independently

How this will work

The first phase will distribute small grants to Young Changemakers in Africa. Communication and reporting channels will be established during this phase to ensure smooth coordination and transparency. Impact stories and outcome data will be collected to assess the results. The effectiveness of the partnership will also be carefully evaluated.

If Phase 1 is successful, we will vote to expand the amount of funding we deploy in grants through this partnership.

Partnership Responsibilities

Ashoka will:

• Identify qualified grant candidates

• Manage application and selection processes

• Handle grant distribution

• Support and monitor recipients

• Facilitate community connections

• Provide impact reporting

Kwanda will:

• Provide grant capital

• Support community engagement

• Share impact stories

• Evaluate partnership outcomes

Impact and outcomes

This partnership will:

• Provide vital financial support to African social entrepreneurs.

• Use Ashoka's expertise and network to maximize impact.

• Connect grant recipients directly with Kwanda members.

• Develop a scalable model to support social innovation in Africa.

• Share impactful stories to inspire continued support.

The pilot phase will lay the groundwork for a potential long-term partnership to support hundreds of African social entrepreneurs.