East Africa’s young leaders gather in Nairobi this week to attend the Ashoka’s Emerging Innovators boot camp.

The three-day event begins Wednesday evening with participants from Kenya, Ethiopia and Uganda in attendance.

The boot camp is hosted by Ashoka, a global organisation that helps entrepreneurs solve social problems. They are hosting 20 of East Africa’s most promising young leaders, whose work focus on making a positive impact.

“Ashoka is building a world where everyone is equipped and empowered to solve the biggest problems in their own communities,” says Ms Alison Gribbs, the Engagement Manager for the boot camps.

Inspire others

She says Ashoka invests in leaders, who “can imagine effective solutions, inspire others to join them and galvanise change.”

Participants include Ms Janet Njeri, the founder and managing director of Voda Water, a Kenyan NGO that provides training and job placements for disadvantaged women.

“A year from now, I want to have infused learning from the boot camp to my organisation. I want it to grow 10 times and I also want it to be known across East Africa,” Ms Njeri says.

She believes the boot camp will help her do that, especially because the networking opportunities can help Voda Water expand throughout the region.

Critical issues

Biddemu Bazil Mwotta, a 22-year-old student from Uganda will also attend the boot camp. He is the chief operations officer of MoBFIT, an SMS platform that connects rural farmers with customers in order to negotiate prices and deliver produce directly to the doorstep.

The boot camp includes networking opportunities alongside workshops on growing a venture, maximising social impact and problem-solving.

The Emerging Innovators Bootcamp was founded in 2012 to identify high-potential leaders and to support them in their mission.

This is the second year an Emerging Innovators Bootcamp is held in Nairobi. It is amongst five being held worldwide- across North America, West Africa and East Africa.