Ngoni Chihombori

Joined ALA in 2008

My name is Ngoni Chihombori and I am a member of the inaugural graduating class of the African Leadership Academy. I am currently pursuing my undergraduate studies at the University of Pennsylvania. I am enrolled in the Huntsman program in International Studies and Business at UPenn, which is a dual degree program with the Wharton Business School and the College of Arts and Sciences.

Enrolling at African Leadership Academy marked a great turning point in my life. It is amazing how much I learned over my two-years at ALA. The academy has helped me cultivate skills, values and beliefs which shall forever be a part of me as I set out on this journey to transform the African continent. Prior to attending the Academy, I was the Projects Coordinator of the Interact club at my former school in Zimbabwe where I spearheaded the formation of a charity tuck-shop which paid school-fees and bought uniforms for disadvantaged children. Upon hearing about the Academy, my former headmaster believed I had the necessary qualities to be part of this ambitious initiative.

The most important thing I took away from ALA was a deeper understanding and appreciation of Entrepreneurship. I strongly believe it is one of the key factors, if not the most important, that is going to influence Africa’s development. Due to the fact that the other Zimbabwean students at ALA and I had the strong desire to share the entrepreneurial skills we had acquired at ALA with many youth who were not as privileged as we were to attend ALA, we launched a youth entrepreneurship training organization this past summer. Junior Entrepreneurs of Zimbabwe’s vision is to foster an entrepreneurial mindset in the youth of Zimbabwe, thereby helping them realize their potential to positively impact their communities. We held our first series of training workshops this past summer and we look forward to continuing with our work in the coming months.

I am very grateful to African Leadership Academy for affording me the opportunity to live up to my dreams.