With 70% of Africa’s population under the age of 30, we as a continent are presented with a great opportunity and, possibly, a great challenge. Young Africans today are taking actions that not only have an immediate impact, but will also determine the future of the continent for decades to come.
Never has there been such weighty responsibility on the shoulders
of young people. Never has there been the influence in the hands of
young people like the influence they carry now. But for Africa to reap
the dividends she has longed for, it is up to our generation to make
sure that influence is channelled correctly and directed towards
relevant issues that affect not only ourselves, but generations after
us. This can only be achieved if we come together as young people and
begin to address the challenges before us as a continent.
The role of African youth is drastically changing, but so are some
of the challenges we face, such as employability and entrepreneurship
opportunities. The strength of any society is within the strength and
resolve of its youth - what investment are young people making in our
continent today?
In the past 6 months, I’ve listened to the argument stating that we
have spent more time focused on what’s happening in other continents,
like the US presidency, and less on local issues. I have had the
privilege of being invited to speak at different platforms across Africa
and have met and engaged with fellow young people who know less about
my country Zimbabwe but more of what’s happening in the US and in
Europe, and these discussions brought us to a conclusion that as a
continent we have not done a good job in telling our own stories, both
good and bad, affecting our people. (Could you tell us a bit about your
background here - in what capacity are you listening to these
arguments?) There are important matters such as the thousands of lives
of fellow Africans lost at sea when trying to leave the continent for
greener pastures, youth unemployment, gross mismanagement of government
institutions and resources, xenophobia among our own people and the
general restlessness and frustrations of young African people.
There’s no problem with us engaging in discourse at a global level,
but I feel it is important for us to exert more of our time and energy
on issues that affect our continent and our people. I believe if we, as
youth, don’t take ownership and responsibility for our problems and
challenges, we run the risk of allowing other nations, organizations and
institutions to do so on their terms. My question to fellow young
Africans is are we creating a future in which generations after us can
be confident?
A lot has been said about Africa and its rise in the past few
years. For this to be true, I believe it requires its people to also
rise and drive the agenda, not wait for instruction or direction from
other nations. If this doesn’t happen, Africa may still rise, but only
for those with an agenda for the continent. This then begs me the
question of fellow young Africans: what is our agenda, and what are we doing to shape that agenda?
With regard to employability, according to the African Development Bank report,
by 2050 Africa will be home to 38 of the 40 youngest countries in the
world, with median populations under 25 years of age. This will result
in an estimated 10-12 million
new people joining the labour force each year. These statistics clearly
indicate that a considerable amount of investment must go into human
development to unlock a demographic dividend. What innovative policies
and programmes do we, as young people, want to make sure that this
happens and that this growth will not result in a demographic time bomb
for Africa?
With the Fourth Industrial Revolution upon us and the rate at which
technology is advancing it is critical that we have a sufficiently
educated and skilled workforce to be able to drive Africa in this
direction. There is currently a mismatch between industry demands and
the education curriculum. Education institutions need to update their
curricula to align with the direction in which the world and Africa are
going. If we ignore this, our young people will have irrelevant
qualifications that the continent will be unable to benefit from.
It is worrying to note the rate at which young educated Africans
are leaving to seek more opportunities abroad. The grass is not always
greener on the other side, however, as leaders of other nations are also
facing domestic challenges and therefore not prioritizing immigrants.
If our educational institutions can include entrepreneurship as a
mandatory subject at all levels of education, more young people will be
better equipped to create jobs and address the issue of high
unemployment.
I am a strong advocate for local solutions to local challenges, but
for this to happen, we need to encourage and cultivate innovation among
our youth. It is encouraging to note that there are pockets of this
already taking place across the continent, where we can see uptake and
use of locally-designed technology. More of this needs to happen across
the board, covering the different sectors of our economies, as Africa
still lags behind the rest of the world when it comes to introducing
disruptive technology. Human development is about creating opportunities
and building a person’s ability to innovate and be entrepreneurial.
Significant investment needs to go towards this.
With the growth of the continent, it only makes sense for us to
industrialize in order to be less reliant on importing products for
consumption from outside the continent. According to the African
Economic Outlook 2017 report, Africa’s growing population is expected to
generate a rise in consumer spending from $680 billion in 2008 to $2.2
trillion in 2030. This increased spending has the potential to lead to
greater prosperity.
The growth in Africa’s population presents a huge opportunity for
entrepreneurial innovations and ideas to be implemented. It does,
however, require strong political will to enable the right environment
to be created to encourage these ideas and for entrepreneurs to be
supported in their different stages of growth, from start-up, early
stage and growth stage right through to becoming large corporations.
As you may notice, this article asks more questions than it
provides solutions. The best way for us to answer these is if we begin
to engage in conversations and dialogue amongst ourselves as young
Africans and see what solutions we can come up with for a better Africa.
We spend time complaining about poor leadership in our countries, but
my final question is: are we ourselves prepared to succeed the
generation that precedes us?
Let us intentionally create a culture that encourages the building
and shaping of the Africa that we want. The change we want begins with
us coming together and developing our own culture and value system for
thinking, planning, implementation, accountability, integrity and
collaboration. It is up to us as young Africans to shape the narrative of our continent. Let us begin to do so, in every sphere of society.
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