We at Akili Network believe we can enrich the lives of kids and their families in Kenya with quality educational entertainment content.

In 2012, we visited Kenya at the request of the Deputy Chairman of the Kenyan Content Task Force to review some pro-bono work we did on ways Kenya could grow their media sector.  When we proposed doing some children’s programming at a meeting with the government agency overseeing broadcasting, they said "What would be of interest is if you were to do a channel for children.”  We were then invited to apply for a free-to-air digital broadcasting license.

We quickly learned that there are 18 million children under the age of 14,
and there is virtually no quality programming for them, and no one is
producing or distributing inspiring, educational programs that our own
children in the US have access to every day.  We knew that formal education is incredibly important in Kenya and they did make primary education free in 2003.  But having worked in the business of children's educational content, we knew the incredible value of informal education in the home. 

There is extensive scientific research that supports the notion that informal educational content not only supports school readiness and academic success in literacy, STEM and social-emotional awareness, but develops inspiration, builds confidence and sparks imagination.  In the US we take this for granted, since this kind of content has existed for years and is widely distributed and available.   

Our timing was truly auspicious: Kenya was poised to convert from an old analog broadcasting system to an advanced digital one, offering the possibility of many more channels.  We concluded that there was going to be an incredible opportunity to deliver much needed content for children in Kenya and the rest of East Africa.

So we asked ourselves “How could we build a sustainable business model that could reach the maximum number of children and their care givers and support their informal educational needs? How can we give these kids and their families free and unlimited access to the kinds of content that positively impacts our own children's lives every day?” 

The Akili Solution

We have been working on Akili Network (Akili means wisdom in Swahili) for the last four years and have been issued a free-to-air broadcasting license from the Communications Authority of Kenya.  We’ve developed a detailed plan to bring the world’s best culturally appropriate children’s content to Kenya and to produce original local programs working with Kenya’s best creators, artists and production companies. As English is one of two official languages and is the language used in primary schools, the programs will primarily be broadcast in English.

We’ve assembled an amazing team of Kenyans who are experts in their local domains and our global management team has decades of experience developing this type of content with companies like Scholastic, Nickelodeon and Living Books.

To reach the maximum number of children and caregivers, our network will be free whether distributed to digital televisions, mobile devices, tablets or computers.  By maximizing our reach of a large underserved audience, we will support both our social impact goals and our business goals. 

Our business model is commercial advertising and the sale of behavior change communication (think a paid Public Service Announcement) airtime to NGOs (Non-Governmental Organizations) and government ministries. We're also creating supplemental materials that will extend their informal learning experiences into the classroom for teachers who wish to use them, as well as materials for use at home by parents who desire free activities with real-world academic or social-emotional benefits for their kids.

Our business model is meant to be sustainable -- and if it succeeds in Kenya we're poised to enter adjacent East African countries. 

What We Need & What You Get

The funding we're hoping to raise will help us acquire programs, purchase and install the equipment we've selected to broadcast across platforms, pay for the transmission of the channel and pay our team in Kenya and the US to finalize the ground work for our launch:

• We're looking to raise $600,000 dollars. This will get us on the air and
  with the funding we've already raised from investors in the US and Kenya, it will close the gap and enable us to get to a self-sustaining business faster.  Any additional funds we raise will be allocated to the development of our long list of new local programs for preschool and school-aged children and their families and caregivers. 
• Our perks are simple and celebrate your investment in this amazing program. You can get some Akili Network swag, or if you opt out of the swag, we'll pass the dollars saved on to give away Akili pencils, notebooks and soccer balls to kids in Kenya. 
• If for some reason we aren't able to reach our goal, our funds go first and foremost to purchase our broadcast equipment and focus on early childhood programming only. We can launch with just this programming if we have to, but it is our (and our audiences') goal to have the full offering of programs for ages 2-14 at launch.
  
  
  
  
  

The Impact

18 Million children and their families in Kenya will directly benefit from this venture. 

Additional benefits of Akili Network will be: job creation and the growth of Kenya’s media sector, community respect and involvement (an issue highly prized by most Kenyans), and a number of important changes in behavior over time through our selection of programs, including protecting the environment, gender equality, and health practices.

As our audience of children and caregivers grows, we will be an important vehicle for NGOs and government ministries for reaching this important audience with behavior change communications. 

Our messages of positivity and inspiration are the best way to defend against ignorance.  These children truly deserve the best of what the world can offer.  

Our management team has experience leading many ventures in media and education, both large and small, from producing children's programs and educational entertainment, to running successful startups such as Living Books to developing award-winning television series' (like Peep and the Big Wide World) to publishing award-winning reading comprehension educational technology for use in classrooms (ReadAbout for Scholastic) to acquiring the best programming for children for Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, Qubo and Discovery Kids.  The Kenyan members of our team have sold advertising for one of the largest broadcasters in the country, have led production for the country's Ministry of Information Communication and Telecommunications and have created IP standards for the Kenya's media industry. We even have a successful track record of doing business in Kenya. We know the industry, the region and the audience.

Here are some of the team bringing this to life:

Founders/Management Team:

• Jeff Schon, CEO - 20+ years TV mgmt and production, Hearst, Living Books, Scholastic
• Jesse Soleil, President - 20+ years of digital products and marketing, Scholastic, Massiverse, Porter Novelli
• Gerry Gitonga, General Counsel, 15+ years of Kenyan IP and entertainment law
• Dea Perez, Head of Programming, Nick, Cartoon Network, Discovery Kids

Advisors:

• Charlie Deull, International Business Advisor; experience: Scholastic, The Hunger Project
• Matt Finick, Consulting CFO; experience: Marvel, Reading Rainbow
• Rafique Keshavjee, Education in Africa; experience: Aga Khan University
• Andrea Miller, International TV; experience: Cartoon Network, TCM
• Bruce Paisner, TV/Media Strategy; experience: Hearst, International Emmys
• Priten Patel, East African Business Advisor; experience: Meditec, Vanguard Group

Risks & Challenges

We have reduced the risk of the venture by extensive business planning, lining up agreements for the programming, establishing relationships with government ministries and production companies and assembling a world-class group of advisors and management team.  All we need now is you!

Truly Akili Networks' biggest risk is not raising all the funding required to launch the channel. To mitigate this, we have decided that if there is a shortfall we will reduce the amount of programs we launch with and initially focus on just preschool programming.  

• The risks to the business are tied to the speed at which we can grow our audience.  We have developed an extensive marketing and PR program that works with major outlets and on the ground with each of Kenya's 47 counties and their respective leadership to promote the network. 
• While there is occasional security instability in the region, we believe this venture is less affected by these events.   
• Our senior leadership will be on the ground in Nairobi to manage Akili.  

Other Ways You Can Help

We appreciate any investment you might consider, but even if you cannot, we would sincerely appreciate you sharing our venture with your own personal network:

• Please spread the word about what we are trying to do! You can easily use the sharing tools built right into Indiegogo.
• We could really use some help executing across our social media channels - if this is of interest we'd love to talk.