2063 prospects of a developed Africa: Cape to Cairo’s call to harnessing and utilizing its human resource (original) (raw)
Related papers
Respublica Litereria , 2019
The abundant opportunity availed to me as Chief Scout of Ethiopian Scouts address this august gathering of university youth and scouts is a tribute to how far we have travelled in our modicum of endeavours for human security and youth participation in shaping Africa. True, there is no silver bullet for sustainable livelihoods, peace and security in Africa. For the ultimate hope to salvage imperilled Africa lies precisely in strengthening of African youth and civil society. Strategies to transform Africa need to be undertaken simultaneously at local and regional levels, in the social, political, military and economic spheres of development. To undo the historical slavery, colonialism and authoritarian militarism peddled by Africa’s despots and the current looting of Africa’s natural resources by its ‘elected’ leaders and the resultant human despair, Africa’s youth must stand up. In the long term, a youth-visioned human security is best guaranteed by democratic, accountable and stable states presiding over sustainable development. The heart of Transformative Social Change is the intimate connection between the outer work of strategizing, organising, and campaigning, and the inner work of who we are as human beings. Transformative change asserts that our success in creating a more just and sustainable world requires our ability to connect with the deepest longings of people. We ought to develop our emotional intelligence as well as our political analysis, that we live and practice justice and sustainability in the way we do social change, and ultimately, that we be spiritual as well as political leaders. Hence, the lecture deals with social capital - youth-led society - freedom from fear (democracy); economic transformation -freedom from want (development), wrestling corruption, youth-led society & the media. It also dwells on youth-led society peace-building framework; strengthen civic education in primary schools adult civic education & popular participation in citizenship and premises of alternative conflict management Key words: African youth, Africa Day, transformative social change, peace, human security, development. An earlier generation, 70 years ago, fashioned the values of peace and international cooperation from the ashes of war; a supreme embodiment of the Charter of the United Nations. Today, we resolve to build a better future for all people, the millions who have been denied the chance to lead decent, dignified and rewarding lives and to achieve their full human potential. We can be the first generation to succeed in ending poverty, just as we may be the last to have a chance of saving the planet. The world will be a better place if we succeed in our objectives. What we are announcing today is a Charter for people and planet in the 21 century. We will find in the new Goals a platform to channel our infinite capacities for activism into the creation of a better world. It is "We the Peoples"-the celebrated opening words of the UN Charter-who are embarking today on this road (SDGs)
The purpose of this event is to unsettle the apparently obvious relationship between youth and modernity in Sub-Saharan Africa. The link between generation and change will be problematized and contested, refusing linear periodizations implicit in the notion of modernity, and underlining instead the ambiguous and troubled relationship between youth and social and cultural change in contemporary Africa. The challenge we take up is therefore that of proposing new theoretical frames to reassess the role of youth in contemporary Africa, getting rid of the pitfalls of modernity or modernization theory but without overlooking concrete and dramatic processes of change. Actually, if it is indeed problematic to understand contemporary youth in Africa in terms of 'modernity', we cannot overlook neither that the African present has much to do with the impact and reaction to expansive markets, mass media and commoditization, and with the colonial and postcolonial Euro-American expansion; nor can we ignore the powerful hold that the idea of modernity has in many popular fields of discourse, both in local contexts, state policies and international institutions. Notions of being and becoming modern, aspirations to become modern, are a palpable and potent ideology in many if not most areas of Africa. Dealing with the relics of post-independence modernisation agendas and struggling with the contradictions of the ecumenical ideology of globalization, young people have appropriated notions of development, modernity and progress, reworking them and at the same time reassessing their future through them, trying to make sense of their present and dire condition. If we consider the question of youth in Africa, in fact, we rapidly realise that the controversial role of youth in politics, conflicts and rebellious movements is one of the major challenges in the continent today. The issue is that of the problematic insertion of large numbers of young people in the socioeconomic and political order of postindependence Africa. African youth, while forming a numerical majority, largely feel excluded from power, are socioeconomically marginalized and thwarted in their ambitions. Despite these constraints and structural violence, young people throughout the continent have shown a stunning capacity of local agency, creating, manipulating and inventing new identities and strategies, transforming urban and rural contexts in surprising and unexpected directions. In war zones, migratory paths, villages and shanty towns, young people are strong emerging actors and a consistent theoretical concern comes out, in order to show how they are active agents in the construction and manipulation of the forms of sociability of contemporary Africa.
Youth and Africa (IAI Research Studies, 2020, 121 pp.)
According to UN projections, Africa’s population is set to double to 2.4 billion by 2050, and it is expected to hit 4.3 billion by the end of the century. By then, about one-third of all of humanity will live on the continent. While many studies have focused on the present and the future of Africa and its interconnections with Europe, it is rare to hear how young people from Africa view and interpret current developments unfolding in their countries. To fill this gap, 'Youth and Africa' brings together seven outstanding young intellectuals and scholars from the Maghreb and sub-Saharan Africa. They shed light on challenges and opportunities, and remind us that “Africa is a voice to be heard, not a problem to be solved”.
Challenges and Opportunities of Youth in Africa
2014
The issue of youth is the most pressing matter for Africa due to various factors including the demographic fact that the continent is mostly inhibited by young people. Sixty percent of the African population is below the age of 25. Yet the youth in Africa are alienated and marginalized and they are not involved in policy formulation and less consulted in the decision making process, many are underemployed and with no jobs and the continent is having an energized youth with most of its energy invested in stirring-up conflicts and violence. Proper engagement of youth at all levels of development is of paramount importance. African governments need to be aware that if they do not reform and are able to integrate the youth in thier development effort they will face in adverse situations such as revolting and restless youth. Therefore, the issue of youth participation and youth representation needs to be scaled up at the level of government-local, regional, and national levels as well as...
Africa needs to adapt to the dynamics of its driven force, the youth
Article, 2023
The valorization of the youth is of extreme importance to the African continent. The number of unemployed young people or those who are leaving their countries in search of opportunities due to the enormous political, social and economic challenges that many African countries have presented, has been increasing more and more. African governments in this context need to regain the trust of youth because they represent the driving force of a society.
AFRICA'S YOUTH POWER 2020: ECONOMIC BOOM OR DOOM
Africa is at the cusp of a continental revolution and the youths are the prime stakeholders that would tilt the dynamics to a valiant win, but would the old guards stand in the way? The clouds are gathering for a deafening momentum! 2020 is upon us, change is inevitable!!
The (democratic) future is ours to create' : youth and democratisation in Africa
2014
generation must, out of relative obscurity, discover its mission, fulfil it or betray it." Frantz Fanon Résumé Au centre de cette réflexion se trouve la lutte de la jeunesse africaine pour donner un nouveau sens à la démocratie que ce soit à travers les manifestations de rues ou les réseaux sociaux. En identifiant les facteurs spécifiques qui ont récemment renforcé la conscience et la visibilité de la jeunesse africaine dans la lutte pour la démocratie, la question est de savoir si de tels efforts constituent une plateforme durable pour la promotion des valeurs démocratiques sur le continent. L'article affirme que le développement technologique inégal sur le continent requiert une stratégie vaste afin de promouvoir un véritable changement sociopolitique et économique en Afrique et recommande entre autres mesures un programme de prise de conscience renforcé sur les activités de la jeunesse, le lobbying auprès des institutions gouvernementales nationales et internationales pour obtenir l'inclusion de la jeunesse dans les politiques de planification, l'engagement du secteur privé et le renforcement de la coopération entre les institutions des jeunes.
The Transformation of a Young Continent: Dimensions of Africa Rising
Contemporânea – Revista de Sociologia da UFSCar, 2019
In the past, there has been agreement across board concerning Africa's malaise. Therefore, winds of change that have been occurring over the last two decades are noticeable, and a new narrative has been replacing the earlier jaded perspective. A light is being focused on the new generation of Africans driving technology, culture, education, and entrepreneurship among other areas, shifting the continent from earlier marginalized perspectives, to a new world which other regions are courting for business opportunity. What is the nature of the transformation that has given a boost to the continent? Broadly, this newly reinvigorated perspective is referred to as Africa rising. It is a conversation that is still taking shape. This paper contributes to the discourse by outlining the changes that have occurred. It begins by exploring the continent's jaded historical background, explores change in the political space since the 1990s, which in turn created an environment that intersected with the revolution in information technology to enable an economic turnaround. Lastly, the paper explores the ongoing demographic transition, with a particular emphasis on the continent's young population as the vital driving force into the future of the continent. (NOTE TO READER: Note there are in-page citation errors by the publisher or typesetter on pages 407-408, 418. Skip the erred lines)