Supplier BulletinJul 03, 2025
Protect Your Customers and Your BusinessSponsored by the Gemological Institute of America
SourcingMar 29, 2016
DEF gives $122K to African Leadership Academy
The money, granted Sept. 25 just before the academy’s Student Indaba took place, is meant to help support the next generation of leaders in Africa through access to higher education.
New York--The African Leadership Academy received a $122,500 check from the Diamond Empowerment Fund to help support the next generation of leaders in Africa through access to higher education.
Also attending the event was Graça Machel, the former first lady of South Africa, who took part in discussions covering topics such as the preservation of Africa identity, pressing social issues and motivating the next generation of Africans to effect lasting change on the continent.
The following day, the ALA held its regional Student Indaba, a student-led day of sessions for the academy’s graduates, at New York’s Barnard College.
The ALA, located in Johannesburg, South Africa, cultivates outstanding young students through a two-year program that prepares them for college, focusing on leadership, entrepreneurship and African studies. After graduation, students are meant to return to their home countries to apply what they’ve learned to help their own communities.
“These bright young students are a shining example of Africa’s future. DEF is proud to support these emerging leaders who represent our ‘Diamonds Do Good’ mission of supporting transformative initiatives in global diamond communities,” said Phyllis Bergman, DEF president and CEO of Mercury Ring.
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