BYM 2000 - 2024

Brightest Young Minds (BYM) was a South African based not-for-profit organisation that was operational from 2000-2024. It's founding mission was to create a platform that showcases the potential and fast tracks the development of the country's Brightest Young Minds for the benefit of South Africa. It evolved to an organisation that connected young leaders and facilitated the development of skills and design of solutions that created sustainable impact across Africa.

Over nearly a quarter of a century, BYM empowered nearly 2000 of the brightest young minds across Africa. BYMs went on to start, found, teach, disrupt, invent, innovate, initiate and much, much more. They made their careers within all manner of businesses and organisations across the continent. Their work, impact and contribution, as well as the community created by BYM will forever be its legacy. 

In 2024, BYM passed the baton to the next generation of youth serving organisations in Africa, endlessly proud of its network and legacy which will live on. 

Read more about BYM over the years below.

“Over the years Brightest Young Minds identified, developed and channelled the ideas and passion of young people into making a positive contribution in our society. Every year we [were] impressed not only with the remarkable talent but with the inspiring optimism and commitment of these young people.

At every summit the majority of conversations [were] about how to make the biggest positive impact on the community. And it doesn’t stop there. These young people went on start businesses, create universities and schools, initiate social upliftment programmes, invent new products and services and ploughed their talents and energy into all manner of businesses and organisations. Even if we don’t have the answers to all these tough questions, we know that we can still make a difference in the contexts that we find ourselves in, both globally and locally. Even though we’re young, we know that we can do so much to change the world and change our communities.” 

– Dirk Visser, BYM Co-Founder