Recipient of the celebrated Noble Citizen Award,New Delhi and the Outstanding Senior Secondary Teacher Award,Bangkok; Angolan civic leadership enthusiast Arlindon Caiomba has remained a voice to reckon with in Angola. Through StandBright Foundation and the Bright Talks event,he brings together more than 1000 participants yearly, promoting and stimulating the practice and use of all knowledge produced regionally and nationally for development. In this interview with Project Inspire Africa,Arlindo talks about his journey.
Can we meet you?
My name is Arlindo Caiombe. I am 28-years-old and I come from Angola. My hobbies are reading, listening to motivational speeches, surfing the internet and cooking.
Tell us briefly your childhood experience.
I had a difficult childhood due to the civil war in my country as at the time I was born. I didn’t have the luxury of time and security to play around or visit friends and relatives. The war was really a bad experience for a child of my age.
What’s your educational background?
I had my primary school education at Escola Branca,Cacuaco,Luanda before moving to IMNE 24 de junho Cacuaco for my secondary school education. I hold a Bachelor of Arts in English Language Teaching from Instituto Superior de Ciencias de Educacao(ISCED-Huambo). I have a Leadership Certificate from the University of South Africa Graduate School of Business Leadership. I am an Alumni of the Alpha Global Leadership Academy and the Youth for Human Rights International Academy.
What are your contributions towards making your country a better place?
I am the Executive Director/Co-founder of StandBright Foundation, a nonprofit organization committed to helping Angolans ,explore their potentials, overcome their fears and awaken the genius that is within them in order to influence positively the history of the world.
What steps did you take to bring your vision to fruition?
After I understood clearly what the vision of StandBright is, the next step I took was to find young people who could think outside the box in order to find solutions for common problems in our communities.
What have been your achievements?
Over the last three years, the work of StandBright Foundation in the areas of education and civic engagement have gained recognition locally and internationally from the United States Embassy in Angola and the Regional Leadership Center in South Africa. Our Stand for the Needy campaign where we donate food, clothes and other basic necessities have directly reached over one thousand persons. We have held several blood drives donating 150units of blood in furtherance of our Stand For Health Program. We began running an online course on Civic Leadership in Portuguese in 2020 and so far, we have graduated 350 students. Our biggest event is the Bright Talks that attracts more than 1000 participants each year. Bright Talks are conferences and talk sessions are aimed at; valuing, promoting and stimulating the practice and use of all knowledge produced regionally and nationally, and through them motivate, inspire, empower and give opportunity to those who want to share their knowledge and talents with the world.Bright Talks is held in English and Portuguese and will be present throughout the national territory and beyond.
Through the Stand For Green, we have planted 300 trees within our community. We have also provided free English lessons for 500 persons in rural areas. Our goal always is to see that everyone in our community becomes a better person and give back to the society. In 2020, I won the Noble Citizen Award in New Delhi India in recognition of our efforts towards peace in Angola. I am also a recipient of the Outstanding Senior Secondary Teacher Award in the International Education Summit and Awards(IESA) Bangkok, Thailand .
What motivated you to do what you are doing?
I am motivated by my childhood experience. The idea for me is to see the younger generation in a position where they can offer something special on behalf of the country.
How have you been able to raise money to implement your ideas?
We've been able to raise money through sharing our past and future projects to those we feel have interest in the kind of work we do.
What are your prospects in the next 5 or 10 years?
In the next 5 or 10 years ,we want to have a permanent infrastructure for the Foundation where we're going to be providing solutions that can inspire hope in the future of our nation.
What do you think is the major cause of unemployment in Africa, and how can we get over this?
Undoubtedly Africa is the richest continent in the world but we have a problem of mismanaging our resources which has contributed to the scary state of unemployment. To make any headway, African leaders must begin to provide better political leadership, improve education and create a national orientation.
If you had an opportunity to speak to presidents in Africa, what would be your message.
Very simple! Invest in the future of Africa. Give the youths the right environment to thrive as their contemporaries globally.
Thank you for speaking with us.
It's my pleasure.
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Wow, an amazing story.
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