Our 20th year celebration

2018 was a big year for Genesis Analytics. We had been in business for 20 years and seen the firm grow in size, practice areas and geography.

For us it was not a year of looking back but at what the next 20 years will look like. Africa is expected to grow by over one billion people in the next 20 years. This increase will be greatest among those aged between 15 and 24, cementing Africa’s place as the world's youngest continent.

Where many see this as a crisis, at Genesis we see this as an opportunity. The African youth wave presents a tipping point which, if harnessed strategically, will radically alter Africa’s, and indeed the world’s, trajectory.

We started the celebrations in February (the month the firm was founded) with events in Nairobi and Joburg. The year culminated at an event with our alumni and close associates. We contacted all the alumni we had records for and some even chased up others. Thank you. For those of you who could not attend, and especially the many friends of Genesis who sent messages of support, we have dedicated this page to you.

The guest speaker was our own Trudi Makhaya, who is now the economic adviser to President Cyril Ramaphosa. Directors James Hodge spoke on the founding principles of Genesis and Richard Ketley on the expansion of our work into the rest of Africa. Staff presented some of the highlights of the work we had done in the past 10 years across the eight practices.

Evaluation for Development analyst Kagiso Zwane introduced Africa's youth wave and how it will change the demographics of the world. Finally Genesis founder and chair Stephan Malherbe spoke on the increasing focus in Genesis to go beyond clever analysis to designing solutions. This shift holds great opportunities – and will change the shape of Genesis. It has been a busy year for Genesis and we look forward to tackling the next decade with renewed energy.