Patoranking named first UNDP Regional Goodwill Ambassador for Africa

The appointment means that for two years, Patoranking will primarily champion the timbuktoo initiative, a youth innovation and enterprise development programme that seeks to bolster the innovation ecosystem in Africa and entrench the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

“Empowering African youth by providing them with the tools, resources, and opportunities they need to thrive is a cause close to my heart,” Patoranking said. “I step into this role to lend my voice to important initiatives that hold immense potential to change development for many of our people through innovation and technology driven by the ingenuity and ambition of the continent’s majority – the young people.”

Patoranking’s journey from adversity to success inspires many. Having faced and overcome significant financial challenges, he has made it his mission to give back. His dedication to fostering entrepreneurial leaders and creating educational opportunities for students from underprivileged backgrounds is a testament to his resilience and commitment to making a positive impact.

In 2020, he created the African Leadership University (ALU) Patoranking Scholarship, which offered 10 fully paid scholarships for promising students from across Africa to attend the prestigious African Leadership University in Rwanda and Mauritius. He is currently finalising scholarship offers for the next batch of students offering a three-year degree.

In May 2024, he launched the Patoranking Foundation Tech Scholarships through a ground-breaking partnership with ALX Africa, a leader in innovative tech skills development for young African talents. The collaboration will soon announce a half-a-million-dollar fund to empower 40 exceptional young minds with access to cutting-edge technology education and career-ready training.

“Creatives are incredibly important to the evolving story of Africa,” UN assistant secretary-general and director of UNDP regional bureau for Africa Ahunna Eziakonwa said. “They bring something more than money – they bring authenticity, dignity, confidence and influence. We look forward to working with Patoranking as the UNDP Regional Goodwill Ambassador for Africa as a champion for youth innovation and the timbuktoo initiative, where he will use his talent to advocate and create opportunities for others.”

According to UNDP, Patoranking’s unique craft and voice, which resonates with a diverse audience across Africa and beyond, will be instrumental in rallying young people to create African solutions. As the Regional Goodwill Ambassador, Patoranking will use his creative voice to advocate for SDGs attainment in Africa. He will mobilise a critical mass towards sustainable investment, bring the majority of African youth into the room, and inspire innovative action that helps in closing the gap between opportunity and investment.

He will also play a crucial role in advocacy for the timbuktoo initiative, which features 10 thematic vertical Hubs in Accra, Cairo, Cape Town, Casablanca, Dakar, Addis Ababa, Kigali, Lagos, Nairobi, Lusaka, and timbuktoo University Innovation Pods (UniPods) based across the African continent. His advocacy, UNDP believes, will be critical in investing, reinforcing, nurturing, and building an African youth innovation ecosystem.