As published at moneyweb.co.za on 2 September 2026. Summary by TFOS; the full text and photographs belong to Moneyweb.
Speaking after the Africa Schools Team Chess Championship in Stellenbosch, which brought together 26 school teams from 22 African countries, International School Chess Federation president Timur Turlov argued that chess should be treated as an investment in human capital rather than a pastime, and set out a plan to move it into mainstream education across the continent.
The plan
Three elements: national federations that sustain themselves through government partnerships and private sponsors rather than one-off donations; a redesigned continental qualification model for the World Schools Team Championship that lowers the cost and travel barriers for developing chess nations; and structured teacher training with standard materials so that chess can sit inside school curricula. Turlov pointed to Kazakhstan, where chess was introduced in more than 1 500 schools and reached over 60 000 pupils.
The business case
For companies, his argument was that supporting chess builds the workforce they will later hire, provided the relationship goes beyond logo placement. In his words: "Our goal should be to help them help themselves by becoming sustainable and efficient." He also described a digital infrastructure programme for the international federation FIDE, alongside his running mate Viswanathan Anand, drawing on his experience of running a financial group in more than 20 countries.
Why it matters for TFOS readers
The same founder stands behind TFOS, and the championship took place in Stellenbosch, where the company opened its new office in 2026. The article is a good picture of the thinking the group applies elsewhere: build systems and governance first, then scale.