On October 21, 2025, the Center for African Education (CAE) hosted a vibrant Lunch & Learn featuring the Obama Scholars From Africa, bringing together students, faculty, and practitioners for a rich conversation on leadership, innovation, and community-driven change across Africa and the Diaspora. The event created a welcoming, informal space where members of the TC community could engage directly with scholars whose work is reshaping governance, health systems, media, and economic opportunity in their home contexts.
"We designed this (annual) Lunch & Learn with the Obama Scholars to create a space for meaningful exchange—where members of our TC community could listen, ask questions, and learn directly from African leaders shaping change in their own contexts,” said CAE Director Mary Mendenhall. “Our hope is that participants leave with a deeper appreciation for African-led innovation and a renewed commitment to building relationships that extend beyond this interaction.”
Spotlight on the African Obama Scholars
The session opened with reflections from each Scholar, offering insight into their professional trajectories and the vision behind their work. Their contributions reflect the breadth of African-led innovation and the power of locally grounded approaches to systemic transformation.
- Bathsheba Asati (Kenya)
Bathsheba leads strategic efforts at the Amahoro Coalition to develop market-based solutions for forcibly displaced people. She mobilizes private-sector partners across Africa to expand economic opportunities, contributing to 35,000+ job commitments and more than $220 million in mobilized support for organizations working with FDPs. Her work strengthens entrepreneurial pathways for displaced leaders and builds cross-sector collaboration for sustainable, inclusive economic growth. - Mahmoud Hadhoud (Egypt)
Mahmoud works at the intersection of journalism, technology, and democratic transition. As co-founder of Open Transformation Lab Inc., he creates media-innovation tools and regional training platforms, most notably Arabi Facts Hub, to counter misinformation and foster informed public discourse. Having trained over 450 journalists, he focuses on building societal resilience against disinformation and advancing transparent, participatory civic engagement across the MENA region. - Khalid Hashi (Somalia/Canada)
Khalid is the founder and CEO of OGOW Health, a digital health platform improving maternal, child, and nutrition outcomes through human-centered design. Inspired by lived experience navigating health-system gaps, OGOW now supports over 700 clinics across Somalia by digitizing records, strengthening continuity of care, and ensuring access to timely health information. His current work advances scalable, AI-enabled tools designed to expand health equity in underserved contexts. - Michael Richard Katagaya (Uganda)
Michael leads the Evidence and Methods Lab, where he uses civic technology and data to promote transparency, justice, and participatory governance. His team translates complex government and policy information into accessible formats, empowering communities to advocate for their needs. He is expanding digital citizen-feedback tools that strengthen accountability and enable evidence-based public decision-making across Uganda and the broader region.
This Lunch & Learn exemplifies CAE’s commitment to creating platforms that highlight African-led scholarship, innovation, and community-based leadership. By bringing the African Obama Scholars into conversation with the TC community, CAE fosters dialogue that bridges research, practice, and lived experience, grounding academic engagement in real-world impact.
CAE looks forward to continuing this work through upcoming programming, including the Spring 2026 Student-led Conference, which will further amplify voices shaping the future of education, governance, and social transformation across Africa and the Diaspora.