Fred Swaniker

Fred Swaniker is on a mission to bring better leadership to Africa and the world. He leads the African Leadership Group - an ecosystem of organizations that aims to catalyze a new era of ethical, entrepreneurial African leaders for Africa. Over the past 15 years, he has founded and led African Leadership Academy, African Leadership University, African Leadership Network and The Room — a community of global leaders committed to unlocking opportunities for undiscovered talent, starting in Africa. Collectively, these endeavors aim to transform Africa by developing 3 million African leaders by 2035.

Fred previously worked as a McKinsey consultant before earning an MBA from Stanford and becoming an entrepreneur. He has been recognized as one of the top 15 emerging social entrepreneurs in the world by Echoing Green; as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum; as a TED Fellow, and as an Aspen Institute Fellow. He holds honorary doctorate degrees from Macalester College, Middlebury College and Nelson Mandela University. He sits on the boards of the Rhodes Trust and the Graca Machel Trust, and is a member of the International Advisory Board of Waterloo University (Canada) and the Creating Shared Value Council at Nestle. In 2019, Fred was recognized as one of TIME Magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world.

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