The MasterCard Foundation today announced a $10million commitment and support towards The Obama administration's initiative Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI). YALI was birthed in 2010 to support young African leaders as they work hard to spur growth and prosperity, strengthen democratic governance, and enhance peace and security across Africa. This commitment is being made over the next 5 years to help YALI reach nearly 10,000 young men and women in Africa. Exciting news!

The announcement was made at the The Presidential Summit of the Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders , the three day summit taking place between July 28-30th will have as many as 500 of sub-saharan Africa's most promising young leaders to meet with prominent US entrepreneurs, civil society representative and government officials. After the summit there will be a six-week academic study  at 20 institutions across the United States as part of the Washington Fellowship.

You can watch the announcement made earlier today below:

Earlier today the Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders was renamed as " The Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders” and will be doubled in size to reach 1,000 participants each year by 2016

This is a significant commitment which will grow the next African future leaders to transform the continent in every area possible.

Psst... did you know President Obama will be unveiling plans to create a network of YALI Regional Leadership Centers across Africa? Yes way. The four new Centers will be located in leading universities in Ghana, Kenya, South Africa and Senegal. The Centers will provide practical training and development opportunities for emerging leaders on the continent, as well as a platform for their voices to be heard. Mr. President, we are eagerly waiting for these projects.

Useful Facts:

The YALI Regional Leadership Centers are part of a larger investment by the MasterCard Foundation in “Economic Opportunities for Youth” initiatives. The Foundation has already made commitments totaling up to $177 million in 17 countries towards initiatives that are providing young people with demand-driven job skills, life skills, mentorship, and access to financial services.  These skills and services enable young people to find more secure and productive forms of employment and establish successful micro-enterprises.