#WeAreInternational Alum of the Year 2025: the power of community
June 30, 2026
5 minute read: Read on to find out more about Hammed’s work, the impact he has made for students across the world and the power – and importance – of community.
Hammed Kayode Alabi (Hammed), a 2021 graduate of The University of Edinburgh was recognised as the 2025 #WeAreInternational Alum of the Year for his work supporting refugees, asylum seekers and underserved young people across the UK and Africa.
His work spans mentoring, programme design and innovation. Through his leadership initiative, KLCI has supported more than 12,000 young people. And he is the founder of Rafiki AI, Africa’s first generative AI career adviser for displaced youth.
Read on to find out what’s motivated him to lead on this work and the impact his approach has made.
Motivation and early work
Hammed explains that although he is not a refugee or asylum seeker, he feels strongly connected to their experiences through shared challenges around access to basic resources and rights.
Growing up in Makoko, Nigeria, he experienced financial hardship, lost his mother at a young age and faced interruptions to his education. He says:
“I am neither a refugee nor an asylum seeker, but I strongly feel connected with them. Not only because of our shared struggles, but because they also struggle with access to basic resources and human rights. I grew up in one of the notable slums in Africa, Makoko, Nigeria. I lost my mum when I was seven, stayed out of school for an academic term, and my brother did for a whole year. It was a struggle to complete my secondary school education.
“Whilst my condition is different from that of young refugees, I can relate to what it means to lack, to lose a loved one in transit, and not be able to see them again.”
His work began by mentoring a refugee student remotely while living in Nigeria, even while he was struggling with basic necessities, supporting them through high school and university.
This experience developed into eight years of engagement, including supporting a young refugee who created a project to empower refugees with digital skills during Covid-19, co-creating a mentoring programme for refugee learners in Uganda during his degree, and roles with Refugee Education UK and British Red Cross.
Responding to need
Hammed developed Rafiki AI, a platform that provides career advice, CV support and interview preparation in response to the scale of unmet need for career support.
"The problem is at scale, and we need to create a solution that matches that level of scale. There are about 90 million underserved young people on the continent, and I saw how the one-to-one career support I was offering could be scaled.”
The platform is designed for underserved and displaced young people, particularly across Africa, while remaining accessible in other regions facing similar barriers.
“I saw the potential for young people without the resources to access career support. Whether it is Kakuma Refugee Camp or Yemen, young people can access career advice. Even with the slowest internet.”
Rafiki AI provides career advice, CV support, and interview preparation via WhatsApp, making it usable with low internet speeds. Hammed also built Rafiki X, which expands the features of the WhatsApp version and introduces a model where paid users can help sustain free access for displaced youth.
Impact and the power of community
A consistent feature of Hammed’s work is sustained, individual support alongside wider programme development. One example is his long-term support for Mariam, whom he met at a career talk organised for secondary school students by his leadership organisation KLCI. After expressing an interested in a health-related career, she received mentoring and financial support through his wider work and KLCI, and has now completed her Higher National Diploma.
Hammed believes deeply in the power of community. Reflecting on his impact so far, he describes community as ongoing, individual commitment:
“This is what community means to me. Supporting one person consistently until they find the courage to change their communities too.”
This approach has shaped his work at The University of Edinburgh. As a Mastercard Foundation Scholar, he accessed mentoring, professional development, support networks, and led fundraising initiatives to support refugee legal aid and access to higher education.
He now works as a Transitions Coordinator for the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program, co-leading mentoring support for current scholars. He describes this as a “full circle moment”.
Find out more about Rafiki AI at rafikigen.ai and skills2rural.org/rafiki.
Read the stories from some of our other 2025 winners.
Nominations for the #WeAreInternational Awards 2026 are still open. Visit awards.ukcisa.org.uk for details on how to enter.
