A Message from our Director
Despite progress Africa faces immense challenges. Global trends like shifting demographics, climatic changes, intergenerational poverty, and weak infrastructures threaten the region’s future as an economic frontier. With limited and no access to quality education, healthcare and livelihood opportunity, young people and women are particularly hit hard.
The CAEL exists to provide the pathways to tackle these challenges. We help shape the future of education innovation, enterprise, governance and policy in Africa to make them work for everyone, especially the marginalised.
We have a strong passion for the work that what we do. I invite you to join us to build the ‘Africa We Want’, both now and in the future. Together, we can make a difference.
Uchenna Paschal Anosike, Director, CAEL
Discover more about CAEL
The Centre for African Entrepreneurship and Leadership (CAEL) exists in the University to create the ecosystems of entrepreneurship and governance for inclusive growth and sustainable development in Africa through capacity building, research and policy. We believe in working closely with individuals, organisations and governments to realise their own goals and leave a positive impact on their communities.
The CAEL was conceived in October 2013 through the path-breaking vision and leadership of a Nigerian academic – Uchenna Paschal Anosike. It was in response to the desire to develop the capacity in Africa to create opportunities for livelihood access as part of a wider commitment to tackle the challenge of youth unemployment under the African Union Agenda 2063 and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) frameworks.
Prior to that, in June 2012, by drawing on cross-faculty support across the University, the Business School successfully designed and hosted the first ever international knowledge transfer workshop focused on African entrepreneurship and governance. The workshop, attended by prominent African scholars, politicians and policy makers, was the catalyst to a unique kind of partnership that led to the Centre’s mission in Africa today. By 2013, our partnerships have grown and deepened leading to the development of successful models for embedding entrepreneurial ecosystems. In the same year, motivated by strong support of the then Dean, Anthea Gregory, we initiated the formal consultation process that led to the bid to establish an African Centre within the University. The idea was to work with African scholars, governments and policy makers to generate and diffuse knowledge and best practices on entrepreneurship and good governance.
By 2014, the University had received a number of UK national awards in recognition of our work and excellence in this area. These included The Guardian University Awards for Best International Project, PraxisUnico Impact Awards for The Best Collaborative Impact Project, in addition to the Times Higher Education Impact Awards shortlist. These highpoints led to increased commitment to build a solid network of partners across Africa where the opportunities exist. In a significant endorsement of this commitment, in the same, the Vice Chancellor, Professor Geoff Layer, announced during our partnership event in Africa that the University has approved our bid to formally establish the Centre for African Entrepreneurship and Leadership (CAEL).
True to our strong focus on Africa, CAEL continues to draw upon our cross-faculty resources and networks to work with our partners to find lasting solutions to the challenges they face.
To work with our global partners to create the enablers and conditions for people, organisations and governments in Africa to become self-reliant and to make communities around them a peaceful and a happy place for all.
Our goal is to serve and connect individuals, organisations and governments in Africa with our faculties and global networks to help them to acquire the knowledge and resources to transform their communities. We achieve this goal through a programme of collaboration and knowledge transfer.
- We design and deliver bespoke executive education and short courses
- We develop entrepreneurial ecosystems from education systems, incubator, innovation labs and entrepreneurship centres that support youth self-employment.
- We embed entrepreneurship education into new and existing education systems.
- We train academic staffs in pedagogical processes and research proposals
- We devise and implement institutional strategies and templates for income generation
- We conduct impact study and formulate policy on entrepreneurship and education.
To achieve the following benefits:
- To build, strengthen and maintain your organisational capabilities.
- To define, plan and realise your own organisational and development goals.
- To adopt and effectively deploy global best practices of entrepreneurship and innovation.
Please contact CAEL@wlv.ac.uk or call +44 1902321770.
For over six years the Centre for African Entrepreneurship and Leadership (CAEL) has directly worked with more than 30 organisations to realise their own goals and 1,000 individuals in positions of authority. This has allowed us to impact more than 10,000 people through direct training interventions, commissioned high quality research and influenced policy that helped individuals to access sustainable livelihood opportunities including starting their own business.
We have worked with funders to support our beneficiaries, some of whom have directly funded our interventions and made our work possible. By contributing to our work, you will be joining our community of supporters with a shared and long-term vision of seeking to make an enduring contribution through training, generating insightful research ideas to influence education innovation and policy for positive transformation in Africa. Without the funding we receive, achieving inclusive growth under the African Union 2063 Agenda and the UN Sustainable Development Goals will be an impossible mission to accomplish.
There are many ways you can help us to make a lasting difference and impact. From funding our training and entrepreneurship education initiatives including scholarship (e.g., for UK doctoral training, reintegrating unemployed youths into the productive sector through entrepreneurship training, girl-child education in enterprise development) and high-quality research, to sponsoring our CAEL-4Impact events (e.g., conference, organised thought-leadership), we are always seeking out partnership with individuals, institutions, governments, organisations, and groups who share our vision and aspiration. You will have the opportunity to meet our inspirators uplifting humanity, learn first-hand about our work and impact on all aspects of social and economic lives of the communities we serve.
Donations towards obtaining a UK doctoral training for African students can only be made to benefit individuals of African descent who have their home in Africa and able to return and make impact in their communities.
Please note that 10 percent of all donations will go towards the administration and impact evaluation of your contribution.
Specific amount/gift: £50, £100, £250, £500
If you would like to discuss supporting our work, please contact Claire Tilt by email CAEL@wlv.ac.uk or on +44 (0)1902321770.
By contributing to our work, you will be joining our community of supporters with shared vision and values seeking to make a lasting change and transformation in Africa under the African Union 2063 Agenda and the UN Sustainable Development Goals through generating insightful research ideas for innovation. You will have the rare opportunity to meet our inspirators uplifting humanity, learn first-hand about our work and impact on all aspects of social and economic lives of the communities we serve.
From funding our education programmes and research initiatives to our inclusive growth events, we are always seeking out partnership with individuals, institutions, governments, organisations, and trusts who share our vision and aspiration.
Donations towards higher education for students can only be made to benefit individuals and groups of African descent and who have their home and able to return and make impact in their communities in Africa.
If you would like to discuss supporting our work, please contact the Centre by CAEL@wlv.ac.uk or telephone +44 (0)1902321770.
You can also fill out the enquiry form out below: