RSAF
WHO WE ARE AND WHAT WE DO
The Rhodes Scholars Africa Forum is a UK-based grant-making charity that supports community development initiatives in southern Africa. Founded more than a decade ago by a group of socially conscious Rhodes Scholars at Oxford, RSAF has grown to support nearly 10 development projects every year.
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RSAF supports public health programs combatting HIV/AIDS, malaria, and diseases related to dirty water; human rights advocacy for women, the LBGTI community, ethnic minorities, people with disabilities, and people with HIV/AIDS; rule of law initiatives that promote access to justice in developing democracies; community construction projects to bring shelter, clean water, and sustainable technology to vulnerable or isolated communities; and programs that empower young people through sports.
WHAT WE FIGHT FOR
RSAF’s mission is three-fold: to increase awareness of social, political and economic issues in Southern Africa, to raise and distribute funds to support small-scale community development, and last, to stimulate discussion about the historical relationship between the scholarship and the region.
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HOW WE DO IT
At the core of our work is our grants programme. Twice per year, a committee of past and current Rhodes Scholars reviews grant applications from a wide array of health, education, and environmental projects in southern Africa. The committee aims to support high-impact initiatives that will enable the applicant to scale up its current work in a way that is measurable and sustainable. Past projects funded by RSAF have included the creation of a maternity ward in rural Kenya, a micro-credit funding scheme in Tanzania and an education scheme for genocide victims in Rwanda. If you are the leader of an eligible project, you can apply for an RSAF grant.
RSAF CONSULTING
To complement the grants programme and broaden its overall impact, RSAF works in collaboration with the Rhodes Social Impact Group (RSIG) to offer free consulting services to charitable organizations in sub-Saharan Africa. All members of the Rhodes community are invited to help out by volunteering as consultants.
GET INVOLVED
All members of the Rhodes community are invited to help raise money, plan events, review grant applications, and more. If you would like to attend an RSAF meeting or make a general inquiry, contact convener Nchimunya Tebeka (nchimunya.tebeka@path.ox.ac.uk) or Mary Jiyani (mary.jiyani@balliol.ox.ac.uk). For information about the grants cycle, contact Kirsten Rowe or Serena Dai (rsafgrants@gmail.com).
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If you are a current Scholar and would like to make a donation via automatic stipend contribution, please visit our fundraising page.
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If you are a Rhodes Scholar of any year and would like to receive RSAF news, please write to rsafnews@gmail.com.