• Harvard Business School and Africa.com are taking in participants for a seven-week course in which young entrepreneurs will be taught by Harvard Business professors virtually.
• Participants will be able to bring their business ideas to the profs to receive feedback.
• The course will begin in March and end in April 2024, and it is open now for registrations.

A multi-company collaboration between education institutions Harvard Business School and Aspire Institute, news publication Africa.com, and the Sight and Life Foundation, has seen the launch of a new seven-week online course “meticulously designed” to bring essential skills and insights to young African entrepreneurs.

South Africans who take part in the course, called AfricaLive!, launched on 15th December 2023, will be able to sit under the learning tree of Harvard Business School professors Caroline Elkins, Tarun Khanna, and Karim Lakhani. Participants will be able to engage these professors in live Zoom sessions every week to take part of in-depth lessons and discussions. The course will run from 16th March 2024 to 27 April 2024.

“Unlike conventional online courses where the learning is often passive and solitary, these live sessions foster a vibrant learning community, facilitating direct interaction with some of the world’s leading educators and thinkers,” reads an announcement of the course’s launch.

“Africa is on the brink of exciting transitions and represents one of the more important markets of the near future. This program is ideal for anyone engaged in an entrepreneurial journey and can benefit from like-minded people and committed faculty,” remarked Professor Tarun Khanna of Harvard Business School.

AfricaLive! will seek to prepare participants with the tools and insights to successfully navigate across Africa’s varied markets. Live sessions will connect participants with Harvard faculty and African industry leaders, augmented by materials and case studies at HarvardX.

“It’s perfectly suited for business professionals, emerging entrepreneurs, and anyone passionate about African markets, offering a rare chance to learn from world-class educators, engage with African business leaders, and connect with a professional network,” the announcement adds.

It might be better to think of the course as more of an incubator, with participants able to get feedback on their business plans from professors, and the ability to ask whatever questions they may have.

Upon completion, participants will earn two certifications, one from HarvardX verifying that they undertook learning and content from Harvard Business School, and another from AfricaLive! themselves, acknowledging the completion of the course.

Unfortunately, the course is not cheap and will mean an ~R18 400 investment from participants. Enrollment for AfricaLive! is now open here.

[Image – Photo by LinkedIn Sales Solutions on Unsplash]