2026
ZuAfrique 2.0 General Report
The 2026 residency in full: who came, what happened, the lessons, and how it was funded and spent.
Written for the programme as it ran then, when the work was rooted in Web3.
Read the report (PDF, 33 MB) PDF, 33 MB
Impact
Every effect, not just the good ones
Impact is the sum of everything our work causes: positive and negative, intended and unintended, direct and indirect. We report all of it, and track it from one residency to the next.
Theory of change
How we expect change to happen
- Inputs
Donations and grants, volunteer facilitators, partner venues, and a growing community of alumni.
- Activities
21-day residencies, funded fellowships, sessions run by residents, AI learning and open research.
- Outcomes
People leave with deeper trust, an expanded sense of what is possible, confidence to lead and relationships that last.
- Long-term change
Communities that build well together in a post-AI world, tested first in Africa and then shared globally.
2025 – 2026
Headline results across two residencies
120+
people have lived and learned together across two 21-day residencies in Kilifi, Kenya
Source: 2025 General Report p.3; 2026 General Report p.6
9
countries represented in 2026, across Africa, Europe and North America
Source: 2026 General Report, p.6
95.7%
of surveyed 2026 residents said their sense of what's possible expanded
Source: 2026 General Report, p.19
100%
of surveyed 2026 residents committed to follow-up action with someone they met
Source: 2026 General Report, p.19
Change over time
2025 compared with 2026
Survey figures come from end-of-programme surveys: 26 residents in 2025 and 23 residents in 2026 (about 64% of those eligible).
Many questions were repeated across both years, but wording and scales were not always identical, so read the comparison as a direction of travel, not a precise measure of change. Only 9 respondents attended both years.
| Measure | 2025 (1.0) | 2026 (2.0) |
|---|---|---|
| Made meaningful new connections | 96.2% | 95.7% |
| Felt more professionally capable | 84.6% | 95.7% |
| Shift in thinking or perspective | 76.9% | 95.7% |
| Became better ecosystem builders or leaders | 76.9% | 87.0% |
| Stepped outside their comfort zone in a good way | 76.9% | 100% |
| Felt a strong sense of belonging | 100% (felt safe, included and seen) | 91.3% |
| Stronger confidence to lead | Not asked | 90.9% |
| Made a connection with significant future impact | Not asked | 82.6% |
| First long-format, in-person programme | 61.5% | 21.7% |
| Stayed longer than planned | 30.8% | 17.4% |
Sources: 2025: Impact Report pp.4–5, 10. 2026: General Report pp.19–21; Impact Assessment pp.6, 9.
What we learned
What didn't work
2025
We had no baseline
We only surveyed residents at the end. We can describe how people felt when they left, but not how much they changed.
2025
Our first survey leaned positive
Only 26 of 60+ residents answered, mostly those who stayed to the end. The survey was not anonymous, and our own team designed and ran it.
2026
Onboarding let people down
The timing of pre-arrival information and agreements was the lowest-rated item in the whole 2026 survey: 2.73 out of 5, with over half of respondents rating it 2 or below.
2026
Our duty of care has to rise
The anonymous feedback channel raised concerns about duty of care and photo and video consent that the named survey missed. A three-week residential programme needs a higher standard of care than a weekend event.
2026
Removals had no clear process
Some residents were asked to leave during the programme, without a documented process. Others found those departures disruptive.
2026
It doesn't work the same for everyone
30.4% of respondents strongly agreed they had been challenged in a bad way. For a meaningful minority, the intensity of the experience was not a good thing.
2026
Basics still fell short
Over a fifth of respondents expected more from the food and the venue, and residents named heat and basic logistics among the hardest parts.
2026
One funder carries too much
Residents flagged that the programme relies heavily on AyaHQ's own money. That is a risk to its future, and one reason we are building an independent foundation.
What we changed between 2025 and 2026
- Added an anonymous feedback channel alongside the named survey, which surfaced concerns the named survey missed
- Residents helped choose the survey questions in an impact measurement workshop during the residency
- Tracked how energy rose and fell across all 21 days, so we can see where the programme sags
- Repeated many questions from 2025, so we can start comparing years
What we're changing for 2027
- Redesign onboarding: clear agreements, house rules and information well before arrival
- Adopt explicit photo and video consent norms for every residency
- Publish a fair, documented process for when a resident is asked to leave, including transport home, somewhere safe to go and a check-in afterwards
- Strengthen on-site medical support, which 13 of 22 respondents asked for: a dedicated medic, a local healthcare partner, or pre-arrival medical disclosure
- Survey participants at the start of every programme as well as the end, so we can measure change
- Bring in an independent research partner to co-design and check our evaluation, as both reports recommend
- Broaden funding through the foundation, so the work no longer depends on a single funder
Reports
Read the full reports
2026
ZuAfrique 2.0 Impact Assessment
Detailed findings from the 2026 survey and anonymous feedback, including the method, its limitations and the risks we face.
Written for the programme as it ran then, when the work was rooted in Web3.
Read the report (PDF, 33 MB) PDF, 33 MB
2025
ZuAfrique 2025 General Report
What happened at the first residency: who came, what we ran, how it was funded and how the money was spent.
Written for the programme as it ran then, when the work was rooted in Web3.
Read the report (PDF, 6 MB) PDF, 6 MB
2025
ZuAfrique 2025 Impact Report
The full findings from our first end-of-programme survey, including the method, its limitations and the risks.
Written for the programme as it ran then, when the work was rooted in Web3.
Read the report (PDF, 10 MB) PDF, 10 MB