YLAI Fellowship Program -Columbia - Suriname -Atlanta

[Babs onabanjo]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 17, 2023

Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative (YLAI) Fellowship Program Participants from the countries of Columbia and Suriname partnering with the A. D. King Foundation, Inc.

Jeferson Tenorio, Jill Sumter, and Romano Jalimsingh are partnering with the A. D. King Foundation, Inc. in Atlanta, Georgia through the U.S. Department of State’s Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative (YLAI) Fellowship Program. For four weeks, these three YLAI Fellows, emerging entrepreneurial leaders, are completing a professional fellowship at the A. D. King Foundation, Inc. Fellowship Placement Organization (FPO), collaborating on mutually beneficial projects and finding a solution to their business challenge action plan they will undertake upon their return to their respective home countries.

CEO, Dr. Babs Onabanjo said, “Entrepreneurship, good citizenship, global awareness and successful interaction with other cultures, positive purpose and beneficial quality of life are major themes of our Foundation.” The fellows are meeting with local business leaders, entrepreneurs, and organizations to learn about various models of successful enterprises. They will also spend time working with the Foundation in planning the Annual Back-to-School Youth Health Fair and Annual Youth Empowerment Summit and Gala later this year.

They will receive briefings from the City of Atlanta, the Urban League of Atlanta, Goodwill of North Georgia, Ronald Blue Trust, Atlanta Business League, Chime Solutions, and more. Their itinerary also includes visits to the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change and the Civil & Human Rights Museum. Two of the Fellows are law students and they had the opportunity to spend some time with Clayton County Superior Court Judge Jewel Scott on Wednesday.”

Community development, business management, fundraising, capacity building, strategic planning, and public/private partnerships are areas of interest for all three Fellows. Jeferson Tenorio is the Founder and Social Programs Coordinator of Bochinche Foundation, Human Rights and Leadership in Cali, Columbia. Jill Sumter is a law student and leader of Buurt Organisatie Pontbuiten en Omgeving (BuPO) in the multicultural country of Suriname. Law student, Romano Jalimsingh, operates Night Owl Projects N.V. focused on social entrepreneurship and services for marginalized Indigenous and Afro-descendant communities in Suriname.

The Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative (YLAI) is the U.S. Department of State’s flagship program for emerging entrepreneurs and business leaders from Latin America, the Caribbean, and Canada. Designed to promote mutual understanding and build a network of young business and social entrepreneurs, the program brings young leaders to the U.S. for entrepreneurial leadership training and fellowships with U.S. companies and social enterprises. The program concludes with a Closing Forum in Washington, D.C. Fellows return to their ventures with new skills, resources, ongoing support from U.S. counterparts, and a broader network, strengthening business ties between the U.S. and the Western Hemisphere and advancing inclusive prosperity in the region.

The YLAI Fellowship Program is funded by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and implemented in 2023 by IREX.

Superior Court Judge Jewel Scott   SHARE!!