Helping young entrepreneurs tee off in business : The Standard

Golf is a fast-growing sport in Africa, particularly Kenya. The early European settlers keen on the game left behind a legacy of beautiful and distinctive courses. Kenya has a total of 40 golf courses; more courses than any other African country except South Africa. And Kenya’s balmy climate could have been made specifically for the game. In fact, Kenya has all the right ingredients to rival the Mediterranean as a winter golf destination. Locally a young Kenyan entrepreneur is on the move to promote the sport among Kenyan youth. Kamau Nyabwengi is the co-founder of the Young Entrepreneurs Network (YEN) Africa, a networking platform that connects young entrepreneurs to the knowledge, resources and social capital needed for business success. The start-up also runs the YEN Golf Programme that enables young Entrepreneurs and professionals to learn how to play golf as they forge networks for their respective businesses and industries.

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YEN Africa’s plans to make Kenya a golf tourist destination and promote the game among the youth Golf is considered a pastime for the wealthy in the society, what is your opinion on this notion? The misconception about golf being a sport for the rich elites probably comes from the fact that golf was gifted to us by the early British settlers. Even after Independence golf and golf courses were seen as colonial relics and this notion has prevailed over the years. Most people think that you have to pay hefty fees to join a club and also own expensive equipment to play. What they do not know is that with the equivalent of what they pay for gym membership (assuming an average monthly subscription of Sh10,000) they can access membership in some of the best golf courses in Kenya, which would include gym subscription, golf and other facilities.  Golf courses also have the equipment for hire. How are you promoting golf among the youth in Kenya?

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First of all we want to demystify the sport by creating more awareness about it, overcoming the misconceptions and making it accessible to the youths from all walks of life. We are also identifying the local talent and nurturing it from a young age so that future international tournaments are not the preserve of old timers only. Finally, we are keen to enhance networking amongst young golfers for peer-to-peer mentorship in the sport and for building synergies in business. Let’s talk about the golf training programme that you run, what does it comprise? YEN Golf is a training programme that enables young entrepreneurs and professionals to learn how to play golf as they network and have fun. The program is conducted by one of the best pro golfers in Kenya at the Windsor Golf & Country Club every Sunday afternoon. The training comprises 8 sessions, which include technical sessions on how to swing, use different clubs and the techniques of playing in the different parts of the course. The training culminates into a mini-tournament where the participants get to test out the skills learnt in a real game situation with fellow beginners at the game. We provide the golf equipment during the training and also for practice before or after the sessions with the pro-coach on Sundays.

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What prompted the idea to venture into the golf training especially among the youth? For us it came naturally. YEN Africa is a platform that connects young innovative entrepreneurs to impact Africa. We do this through events and programs that are geared towards linking young entrepreneurs to the knowledge, resources and social capital required to succeed in business. Golf being a sport known for enhancing networking was relevant for us as a means to bring together young entrepreneurs in an interesting activity that would enable them grow their ventures through business synergy and peer-to-peer mentorship. How many youths have you trained so far and how do you charge per session? We have so far trained close to 100 young entrepreneurs and professionals. For us ‘Young’ means young in age, young in business and young at heart. We’ve had participants as young as 19 years and as old as 58.

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The programme is conducted in cohorts, each cohort has a maximum of 12 participants. We are currently recruiting for the 10th cohort which will start on June 2, 2019 and go on for 8 weeks - we have a few slots remaining. After a cohort graduates they are added up to an Alumni group for more opportunities to play and develop their skills in the game and also for purposes of networking for business with fellow young entrepreneurs and professionals. The entire training program including the tournament will set you back Sh20,000. How does this program benefit the young entrepreneurs or professionals who go through the training sessions? Besides learning how to play golf through the training sessions and tournaments, the YEN Golf program is also about networking for business synergy and peer-to-peer mentorship. We enhance this aspect through a signature networking model called The Experiment - a sort of an AA for entrepreneurs where they diagnose each other’s businesses or career challenges and offer solutions. This is done occasionally after the training sessions. We also bring in successful entrepreneurs and corporate leaders who play golf to share their experiences on the course and in business with the participants. What plans do you have for the future? We intend to have the program rolled out in other locations first around Nairobi then across the country and regionally to enable more young entrepreneurs and professionals learn how to play as they network and have fun. We are also looking to do more tournaments in partnership with golf courses and corporate organizations. Ultimately, we would love to have some of our grandaunts play in prestigious golf tournaments like the Kenya Open.

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GolfYENingEntrepreneurshipHustle