Young African Express

There was a need for relevant and practical skills-focused learning materials for upper primary and secondary students in Kenya. Traditional textbooks and materials were insufficient in providing up-to-date facts, information, and innovations.

Young African Express is a magazine that conducted a baseline survey in 150 Kenyan primary schools in 2005. After distributing six issues in 2006, the impact on literacy, reading comprehension, summarizing, writing, time spent reading, reasoning/problem-solving skills, and general knowledge scores was significant.

Young African Express increased its circulation by 66% in the last three years to meet increased readership demands. The magazine's production expanded to Uganda and Tanzania. It has sold more than 400,000 copies since 2006 and reached more than 1 million readers, with aims to reach 15 million African youth. Subsidized copies are provided for students in government-sponsored schools enrolling low-income households. Service organizations like the Peace Corps use the magazine in their teacher curricula.