ASRI Future Leaders Programme 2025 (Stipend available) Deadline: 6 September, 2024

Applications for the Auwal Socio-Economic Research Institute (ASRI) Future Leaders Programme 2025 are now open. The ASRI Future Leaders programme is an intensive, full-time, training programme that assists young university graduates to pursue careers in the civil society and government sectors, and therefore recruits individuals who are socially and politically active in their communities.

The programme seeks to recruit people who are 30 years old or younger who aspire, in different spheres, to create change in South Africa. In this training programme they enhance participants’ social and human capital in ways that not only accelerates their personal growth, but which also translates into increased opportunities in the future.

This is the seventh iteration of the programme (the inaugural programme was held in 2016). Those who complete the 2025 ASRI Future Leaders Fellowship Programme, like their predecessors, should go on to become influential and prominent leaders in government and civil society, occupying a variety of positions in non-profit organisations, interest groups, policy institutes, media organisations, and the public service, among other such sectors. The investment made during the programme is approximately R100,000 per participant (for the full programme including the externship) which includes the cost of materials, stipends, as well as programme and operational costs.

Programme Structure

The programme structure is as follows:

• The training component lasts 4 months and participants are required to attend Monday to Thursday from 8:00am – 3:00pm, at the offices in Parktown, Johannesburg, from the start of February to the end of May.
• Upon completion of the 4 months long training, there is an optional 3 months long work experience placement (externship) at an organisation in line with your career development goals, with the option of an extension for a further 3 months for high performing individuals.
• Core tenets: the aim of the programme is building a social justice mind-set, with a particular focus on bettering the socio-economic conditions of people in South Africa; emphasis is also placed on integrity, respect, and tolerance.

They cover the following themes:

• The Constitution, governance, law and social justice
• Leadership
• Public policy
• Understanding government
• NGOs and civil society
• Political philosophy
• Economics and development
• Ethics and values

Benefits

• The programme will accept 20 individuals for 2025, and each person will receive a monthly stipend of R3,500 + a data simcard with approximately 20GB to 30GB of data per month for the duration of the programme. There is no financial cost to the participants for attending the programme. This is not a job or employment opportunity. Being a training programme, the stipend is a monthly allowance meant to cover the costs of travel to and from the training venue and contribute towards monthly subsistence.

Eligibility

• Applicants should ideally have a record of active engagement with organisations in their community, have some form of leadership experience, and show potential for being a change agent in South Africa in the future.
• Applicants must have at least an undergraduate degree or diploma (or equivalent post-school qualifications); post-graduate qualifications would be advantageous.
• To be eligible for the programme, you must be able to attend (on site) from Monday to Thursday from 8:00am to 3:00pm, from 3 February 2025 to 29 May 2025.
• Be 30 years of age.
• South African citizenship or residency, or legal permission to reside in South Africa (with the long-term view of staying in the country).
• Upon completion of the programme, participants are expected to remain active within the alumni network of ASRI. ASRI will provide mentorship and support to our fellows throughout their careers.

Deadline: 6 September, 2024

Application

Applications close on Friday, September 6, 2024 at midnight. They will screen and select as applications come in, so submit your application as early as possible. If you do not hear from them by October 31, kindly consider your application unsuccessful. Due to the high volume of applications received, they are unable to provide feedback on unsuccessful applications.

Interviews will be held in October and November and the ASRI Future Leaders Programme will commence on Monday, February 3, 2025. If you are asked to attend the interviews, you will be required to bring a copy of your ID, matric marks and university transcripts along with you as proof of your qualifications.

Click here to apply

For more information, visit ASRI Future Leaders Programme.