2021 Q1 Board Book (Staff)

The March 25-26th, 2021 Board Meeting, focused on the Foundation's "Young Africa Works" strategy and adapting to the ongoing challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Foundation is working towards its goal of enabling 30 million young people, particularly young women, to access dignified and fulfilling work. Key priorities include reimagining work, building the capacity of African organizations, and promoting digital transformation.

The Foundation's main activities and initiatives include:

1) Reimagining Work: The Foundation is actively reimagining its approach to achieving its goal of 30 million jobs. This includes developing country-specific roadmaps for Young Africa Works, with a focus on Kenya, Ghana, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Uganda, Rwanda, and Senegal. They are also exploring new sectors like health and the creative industries. The emphasis is on gender intentionality and addressing the needs of vulnerable communities.

2) Young Africa Works: The Foundation is aligning its teams and partners to achieve its goals. It is also integrating COVID-19 recovery programs under the Young Africa Works framework. The program is focused on supporting MSMEs, improving vocational education, and scaling digital training. The majority of partnerships are with private sector organizations, except in Ethiopia.

3) Country Programs: The Foundation is developing country dashboards to track program results. Kenya, for example, has committed $280 million to seven partnerships and has created work opportunities for 350,000 young people. In Ethiopia, the focus is on agriculture and the digital economy, with 51% of the youth in work being young women. Ghana's program includes an emergency MSME fund, with 90% of youth in work being young women.

4) Scholars Program and EleV: The Foundation is expanding the Scholars Program to three universities in Francophone Africa. It is also working to complete the EleV Program roadmap. The Scholars program is committed to supporting 44,000 scholars with a 70% female enrollment rate.

5) Digital Transformation: There's a focus on leveraging digital technology to promote access to education, skills, finance, and information. This is also reflected in the development of a digital platform for the Ethiopian tourism sector. The use of digital solutions for learning and training continues to be a priority.

6) Health Sector Strategy: The Foundation is developing a regional strategy to unlock the economic potential of the health sector. This involves skilling young people for jobs in the health sector, and supporting health enterprises and primary healthcare systems, focusing on community health workers. The strategy is focused on primary health care, with an emphasis on job creation and entrepreneurship.

7) African Partnerships: The Foundation has a goal of 75% of its partners being African organizations. It is currently at 70% for all programs and 78% for country programs. The Foundation also recognizes the need to improve and be more consistent in tracking gender within programs.

8) Impact Measurement: The Foundation is working on standards and methods to measure program outcomes, including a focus on the quality of work and measuring the impact of programs on individuals, communities, and systems. The new Impact Framework looks at whether work is "dignified and fulfilling" using markers such as reliable income and respect in the workplace.

9) Internal Capacity: The Foundation is focused on strengthening its internal controls and processes, including hiring a Global Controller, and is investing in onboarding and developing talent.

In Q1 2021, the Mastercard Foundation is focused on achieving its core goals, adapting to the challenges of the pandemic, strengthening its programs, and building capacity within its partner organizations. There is an emphasis on generating knowledge, measuring impact, and promoting inclusivity across its initiatives.