The inaugural seminar of the Africa Board Fellowship (ABF) was a remarkable gathering, full of engaged, candid, and rich discussions about board dynamics, roles, and responsibilities. Held June 2-4 in Cape Town, South Africa, the seminar brought together board members and CEOs from 11 countries throughout sub-Saharan Africa. Michael Schlein, Accion’s President and CEO, opened the session underscoring Accion’s support and commitment to the Center for Financial Inclusion at Accion (CFI) and this fellowship program.

This seminar, the first of two, focused on board dynamics, managing sustainable growth, technology trends, and risk management, and fellows were engaged in honest and lively discussions. They openly shared their challenges and experiences whilst working through several case studies that illustrated common industry issues.

A variety of session types and locations kept everyone interested and engaged. While there were some plenary forums and a couple of panels, the seminar mostly consisted of small group discussions, case studies, and role plays to work through challenges while replicating actual board situations, stories, and dynamics.

The seminar was well received and fellows shared positive feedback. “Well designed,” “extremely engaging,” and “informative and practical,” are a few comments from our fellows after an intense two-and-a-half days of case study discussions, role playing, and networking. Sean Foote’s dynamic keynote left our first cohort looking forward to the closing seminar in Cape Town, which takes place November 16-18.

Between seminars, the fellows will remain connected through a virtual collaboration space that includes discussion forums and virtual dialogues. Fellows will determine specific goals for the fellowship and work closely with personal advisors to advance those goals.

• Meet the 2015 Fellows
• Blog post: "Lessons Learned from ABF’s Convening of Microfinance Leaders in Cape Town," Kettianne Cadet, Program Coordinator, CFI