On Tuesday, September 17th, 2024, Jacob’s Ladder Africa (JLA) hosted an exclusive stakeholder event at The Address in Nairobi. The event, titled “Celebrating Impact to Shape the Future,” brought together influential figures in the development ecosystem to celebrate achievements and inspire future collaborations.
In her keynote address, Sellah Bogonko, JLA’s Co-Founder and CEO, emphasized the importance of becoming ecosystem enablers. “We are here because everyone in this room has a role to play in building the sustainable future we all know is possible, and in giving the young people of this nation and our continent the chance they deserve,” she said. She went on to stress, “We cannot claim to be making development strides while leaving the largest section of the African demographic voiceless and off the table.”
Following her remarks, attendees were treated to a showcase of inspiring green innovations from greenlabs, JLA’s climate entrepreneurship incubator program. Alumni and current cohort members presented their groundbreaking solutions, highlighting the impact of youth-led climate action. This included Brian Munene of ARK, iREC trading platform; Enock Mokua of Methagen Organics, Waste upcycling into organic fertilizers.
From the 2024 Cohort were Alice Mwaura of SolarGen, Steam generation (using solar energy) for manufacturing processes; Teresa Atieno of Hyasafi, upcycling Hyacinth into briquettes.
The event then transitioned into a panel discussion featuring industry experts, including:
- Bilha Ndirangu, Founder and CEO, Great Carbon Valley and Co-Founder, JLA
- Joseph Nguthiru, Founder and CEO, HyaPak Ecotech Limited
- David Rubia, Programme Management Officer, UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and Regional Coordinator, Global Opportunities for Sustainable Development Goals (GO4SDGs) Africa
- Ann Kamonjo, Head of Greening, State Department for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), Ministry of Education
- Francis Romano Managing Director, Knights Energy and Founder of Drive Electric Kenya
The panel delved into the role of innovation and leadership in shaping Africa’s green economy, underscoring the need for continued collaboration and investment in green jobs, green skilling and sustainable solutions.
In her closing remarks, Marceline Obuya, JLA Co-Founder emphasized the importance of collaboration and shared responsibility. She stated, “We must join together to move our young people from a point of insufficiency to one of self-reliance.” She stressed that the necessary work cannot be left to the government alone and highlighted the need for collective action.
The atmosphere was electric with optimism as stakeholders mingled and connected thereafter. The shared belief was that by empowering Africa’s youth with the necessary skills, knowledge, networks, as well as fostering an entrepreneurial spirit, they would be catalysts for a more sustainable, equitable, and prosperous continent.
JLA is committed to activating 30 million jobs in the the green economy by 2033 and operates through four main streams:
- Communication and Advocacy: Co-creating and implementing advocacy campaigns, hosting policy and sector-specific roundtables aimed at increasing awareness, engagement, and integration of stakeholders in the green economy.
- Green Skilling for Employment Pathways: Leveraging local curricular development customized to country and sector-specificity, designing and implementing Green Skills Training programmes aimed at increasing climate literacy amongst African youth.
- Climate Entrepreneurship Development: Curbing startup mortality rates by providing opportunities for young people to access knowledge, resources, and networks to build and launch startups addressing the intersection of climate issues.
- Climate Intrapreneurship Development: Designing, co-creating, and implementing grassroots projects that engage youth intrapreneurs across the value chain of programmes encompassing aquaculture, livestock, tree nursery, biochar production, waste management, and apiary management.
The gathering aimed to not only raise awareness of JLA’s key focus areas, but also serve as a rallying cry for all ecological players, with one clear message; Together we can go further faster and bring about the rapid response required to turn the tide on Africa’s fate and realize her destiny.
