From Learners to Leaders: How Youths Are Building Stronger Communities Through Digital Skills in Kafue.

Youth Leaders took part in the Going Beyond Youth Leadership Program's Training of Trainers (ToT), preparing to mentor fellow young people across Kafue

The room hummed with energy as a group of young people gathered around flip charts, exchanging ideas on entrepreneurship, leadership, and digital innovation. One team debated how social media could help local businesses reach more customers. Across the room, another discussed practical solutions to challenges facing young entrepreneurs in their community. At the front, a Youth Leader confidently guided the conversation, encouraging quieter voices to contribute.

Just weeks earlier, many of these same young people had been reluctant to stand before a group. By the end of the training, they were leading discussions, sharing ideas, and inspiring their peers with confidence.

This transformation marked the beginning of something much bigger.

Through the Going Beyond Youth Leadership Program, implemented by Primrose Community Health Organization (PriCHO) in partnership with Digital Opportunity Trust (DOT) and Mastercard Foundation, selected Youth Leaders completed a Training of Trainers (ToT) programme that prepared them to become Digital Business Facilitators. Their role was not simply to apply new skills for their own benefit, but to return to their communities and help other young people build the knowledge, confidence, and capabilities needed to improve their livelihoods.

Across Kafue, many young people aspired to start businesses, secure meaningful employment, or strengthen existing livelihoods. Yet access to practical digital and entrepreneurial skills remained limited, particularly when learning opportunities were disconnected from local realities.

The Going Beyond Youth Leadership Program took a different approach.

Rather than bringing in external trainers, the programme invested in young leaders who already understood the communities they served. Having grown up in these communities themselves, they recognized the opportunities, challenges, and aspirations of their peers. This local knowledge enabled them to deliver learning that was practical, relatable, and grounded in the everyday experiences of young people.

Throughout the Training of Trainers programme, participants strengthened their communication, facilitation, leadership, entrepreneurship, employability, and digital skills through interactive workshops, collaborative problem-solving, and practical learning exercises. Just as importantly, they learned how to facilitate discussions, encourage participation, and create inclusive learning spaces where others felt confident to engage.

Practical learning sessions strengthened Youth Leaders' facilitation skills while preparing them to mentor fellow young people in their communities.

"Before this training, I often doubted whether I was capable of leading others. Stepping outside my comfort zone helped me discover strengths I didn't know I had. The experience gave me confidence, new skills, and the courage to believe that I can make a difference in my community." —Youth Leader

With the training complete, the Youth Leaders are now beginning the next phase of the programme.

Each facilitator has been deployed within the community they already call home, working through designated host organizations that serve as trusted community training centres. These organizations share a commitment to community development and provide a platform for Youth Leaders to mobilize participants, facilitate peer learning sessions, and mentor youth peers throughout the project period.

Because the facilitators understand the realities of their own communities, they are able to tailor discussions using familiar examples, local business experiences, and challenges that participants face every day. This makes learning more relevant, encourages participation, and helps young people see how digital tools and entrepreneurial skills can be applied within their own context.

Youth Leaders were prepared to facilitate community-based learning sessions through local host organizations across Kafue.

The programme's impact extends far beyond those who attended the Training of Trainers. Through structured peer mobilisation and participatory learning sessions, Youth Leaders will mentor youth peers, including aspiring entrepreneurs, small business owners, job seekers, and other young people seeking to strengthen their livelihoods. Participants are encouraged not only to learn new skills but also to share their experiences, contribute ideas, and apply practical solutions within their own businesses and communities.

This participatory approach places community members at the centre of the learning process. Rather than simply receiving information, youth peers become active contributors, adapting new knowledge to their own circumstances and supporting one another's growth.

"When I first started mobilizing and facilitating my peers, I was nervous because I wasn't sure how they would respond. But seeing so many young people eager to learn changed everything. It reminded me that leadership is about creating opportunities for others to grow. I've also learned how important it is to explain things in a simple way so everyone feels included." — Youth Leader

Beyond building individual skills, the programme is nurturing a growing network of young facilitators who continue to learn from one another while strengthening collaboration across communities. By empowering both young women and young men to lead, the programme is helping ensure that opportunities to learn, innovate, and contribute remain inclusive and accessible.

Youth Leaders built lasting networks that will continue supporting peer learning and community development across Kafue.

The long-term value of this model lies in what happens after every training session ends.

As youth peers begin applying digital, entrepreneurial, and employability skills within their businesses, workplaces, and everyday lives, they create visible examples of success within their communities. Those successes encourage others to participate, adopt similar practices, and share what they have learned. In this way, knowledge continues to spread from one young person to another, creating a community-driven cycle of learning, innovation, and opportunity.

The Going Beyond Youth Leadership Program demonstrates that sustainable change is built not by delivering one-off training, but by equipping local young people to become trusted facilitators within their own communities. Through the partnership between PriCHO, Digital Opportunity Trust, and the Mastercard Foundation, today's Youth Leaders are helping build stronger local businesses, more resilient livelihoods, and communities where young people are empowered to learn from one another and shape their own futures.

Because lasting development begins when communities are equipped to lead their own transformation and when young people become the ones creating opportunities for others.

Interested in partnering with PriCHO to expand opportunities for young people? Explore our programmes or get in touch to learn how we are building youth-led, community-driven solutions across Zambia