Fred Swaniker

Educational entrepreneur

Ghanaian Fred Swaniker founded a school and a leadership network to educate and support the next generation of Africa’s leaders.

Why you should listen

2009 TED Fellow Fred Swaniker believes that what's been holding Africa back has been the lack of good leadership. He founded the African Leadership Academy in Johannesburg to attract the best and brightest students from across the continent and give them a foundation in ethical, entrepreneurial leadership. Next, he formed the African Leadership Network to catalyze prosperity by strengthening the relationships between graduates as they step into positions of leadership and vision.

What others say

Fred helped to start a biotech company, and now uses his expertise to help other young Africans develop their leadership skills so that they can come back and put those skills to use serving their communities, starting businesses, creating jobs. So thank you, Fred, for the great work that you’re doing.
President Barack Obama, 2013

Fred Swaniker’s TED Talk

Fred Swaniker
The leaders who ruined Africa, and the generation who can fix it
13 minutes 17 seconds
Before he hit eighteen, Fred Swaniker had lived in Ghana, Gambia, Botswana and Zimbabwe. What he learned from a childhood across Africa was that while good leaders can't make much of a difference in societies with strong institutions, in countries with weak structures, leaders could make or break a country. In a passionate talk the entrepreneur and TED Fellow looks at different generations of African leaders and imagines how to develop the leadership of the future.
Posted Oct 2014

Fred Swaniker

Why you should listen

What others say

Fred Swaniker’s TED Talk

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