By Raphael Obonyo
According to the African youth survey of 2022, by Ichikowitz Family Foundation, youth in the continent want and hope for a better Africa, they are optimistic and taking action to shape that future. But the big question remains as to whether youth on the continent are up to the task or not.
Africa continues to experience an explosion in its youthful population – the continent has the youngest population in the world, and it is estimated that more than 400 million Africans are aged between 15 and 35 years. Across the continent young people are yearning and taking remarkable action to secure better future for Africa. However, defining and shaping a better future for Africa will not be easy, and young people must be ready to face and overcome many challenges.
Youth need a different mindset, major course of correction and a massive effort to reignite progress, define and shape Africa’s future. A lot of effort will be required to give Africa a bright and prosperous future that youth desire. Some of the challenges youth need to tackle include lack of visionary leadership and inequities among socio-economic groups and classes.
The African youth survey report indicates, at least two-thirds of young people thought their respective countries were going in the wrong direction – African youth have no confidence in their countries ability to meet their aspirations. In particular, youth are deeply concerned about lack of employment and opportunities and poor governance especially high levels of corruption.
Ivor Ichikowitz, the Chairman of Ichikowitz Family Foundation, the youth aren’t prepared to wait for handouts, they want to be in charge of their own destinies. They will start their own businesses and they will move to where they believe those greatest opportunities lie. They will leave their homelands for the chance of a better life.
“The youth remain optimistic, but their confidence has dipped. They are worried about the future, especially when it comes to the direction of the continent. They are worried about jobs – especially the lack of them. They are concerned by how we are safeguarding and maintain our natural resources.” says Ichikowitz.
According to Namibian Justice Minister, Yvonne Dausab, some of the key challenges they are likely to face in defining and shaping Africa’s future include generational dynamics, identity politics and getting entangled in the ‘ism’ of sexism, racism, tribalism and other minority rights challenges. Dausab says youth must be vigilant because the world in general and Africa in particular awaits decisive, courageous and bold leadership. There is no time for neutrality. Understand your fight and choose your battles carefully.
“Agenda 2063 of the African Union, various vision 2030s of respective jurisdictions in Africa, language and text of African constitutions, national development plans and the overal policy, legal and institutional arrangements in place are important for our Youth to take cognizance of…It is important for our Youth to study and understand our history. They must read literature that provides an objective narrative of our history and the struggle against imperialism.” says Dausab.
On his part, Kenya’s former Chief Justice Willy Mutunga urges youth to avoid being used by politicians and instead chat a new path. Speaking during the launch of the Youth Leagues, in Nairobi, in 2020, Dr. Mutunga insisted that the youth must play their role as active citizens.
He said the youth must be the foundation of an alternative political leadership. “The moment you are captured by the barons and you are divided then you are no better than them,” he said
Addressing the UN Habitat and UNDP youth 21 meeting in 2012, the former President of South Africa, Thabo Mbeki, urged the youth of the African continent to prepare themselves for a rebellion against their older generation and claim their leadership role.
“To ensure that [the youth] actually exercises the leadership everybody rhetorically accepts and proclaims is its due, the youth must organise and ready itself to rebel, so to speak” said Mbeki
“It would obviously be unnatural that I, a member of the older generation, would easily and willingly accept that younger people, my own children, should, at best, sit side-by-side with me as co-leaders, fully empowered to help determine the future of our people” added Mbeki
Prof Luis Francheschi, the assistant Secretary General of the Commonwealth, is worried about the lack of reading culture on the continent. He says that the problem is not only leadership or corruption, young people need to read.
“The lack of reading culture in Africa is worrying…We have brilliant minds but we lack a reading culture, and if we do not read, we have no ideas and if we have no ideas we have no ideals…This makes us manipulable and superficial. The disastrous vicious cycle of Africa’s mismanagement will be repeated again and again. It’s only a matter of time.” he says.
But there is a lot to be excited about if the African Youth Survey revelation is anything to go by, that young Africans are taking initiative to build a better future for themselves, their countries and continent that ties them together.
The Atlantic Dialogues Emerging Leaders Program, annual program for changemakers across the Atlantic and Africa curated by Policy Centre for the New South, based in Morocco. Atlantic Dialogues Emerging Leaders programme, brings together young leaders to stimulate intergenerational dialogue, and aims to bring positive changes in their communities and international levels by inspiring and empowering the youth.
Every year, this program brings together 30 to 50 young leaders from around the Atlantic basin and Africa. These rising leaders have displayed leadership capabilities, and have a strong sense of commitment to social and economic issues facing their communities in particular and the world in general.
Also, there are efforts to transform the continent through support to youth entrepreneurship, technical and vocational training and digital economy.
According to Africa Development Bank, the youth make up the bulk of the unemployed or underemployed in Africa, with 60% of the total unemployed. The share of unemployed youth among the total unemployed can be as high as 83% in Uganda, 68% in Zimbabwe, and 56% in Burkina.
With the increasing youth population, Africa needs to create jobs much faster, and there is recognition and effort to address unemployment by different countries on the continent. For example, as the country faces one of the highest jobless rates globally, South Africa government has partnered with the private sector to drive job creation.
At the same time, young entrepreneurs in South Africa are making their mark on the local small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) sector, and their success is a prime example of the next generation of business leaders.
In Kenya, the government is investing in the digital economy to create more opportunities for the youth. Also, the government has launched funds to support micro, small and medium enterprises, to address unemployment and lack of opportunities for youth. Additionally, Kenya is focusing on Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) to tackle youth unemployment, especially addressing the chronic mismatch between skills and work. In Ghana, government is providing support to young entrepreneurs and giving incentives to businesses that hire young people.
Few would deny, that the opportunities that come from African youth outweigh the challenges, and that young people on the continent have the power to conquer any problems. The future of Africa at least looks bright, and it is in the hands of the youth.
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RAPHAEL OBONYO is a public policy analyst and widely published author in Africa and around the world. He has served as a consultant with the United Nations and the World Bank. An alumnus of Duke University, he has authored and coauthored numerous books, including Conversations about the Youth in Kenya. Obonyo is a TEDx fellow and has won various awards. Email: [email protected]
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