Economic growth noted in several African countries in the last decades is misleading because it is neither inclusive nor sustainable. African governments must use the revenue from raw materials to develop human capital especially among young people under 30 years old who account for 70 % of the population, the Executive Director of UNFPA, Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin, said in Dakar, Senegal.
The Executive Director of UNFPA was addressing more than 500 young delegates from 54 countries in Africa and the Americas and Europe Diaspora taking part in the 4th Pan-African Youth Leadership Summit that opened on 13rd January 2014 in Dakar.
Speaking of youth unemployment which is the theme of the summit, the Executive Director of UNFPA stated that the current system of sending children to school and then getting them jobs was no longer working.
According to Dr. Osotimehin, no economic system can absorb all young graduates entering the labour market, adding that there is a need to encourage young people to become entrepreneurs, by taking advantage of developments in technology.
“…Let’s tell governments they should use diamond, gold and oil to develop human capital. They have to provide resources to health and education. We have to step up access to sexual and reproductive health and rights including contraception and family planning,” he said.
UNFPA is proposing a specific youth goal for the post-2015 development agenda. This goal will include access to Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights, access to education, access to entrepreneurship skills among others, Dr. Osotimehin told young delegates and high-ranking personalities including several African ministers and elected officials.
Dr. Osotimehin also paid tribute to Ms. Aminata Toure, a former UNFPAstaff he worked with, and hailed her achievements, in such a short period of time, in her capacity as Prime Minister of Senegal.
On behalf of UNAIDS, Dr Mamadou Diallo, Regional Director, emphasized that youths are not a weakness but the engine of the social transformation of Africa and the world.
For her part, the deputy Secretary General of the National Youth Council of Brazil, Angela Guimaraes, voiced the support of Diaspora youths in the Americas to their African counterparts.
Mr. Hadjibou Soumare, President of the WAEMU Commission, assured delegates of the commitment of Member States to promote employment. He added that peace and security must be listed as an initial condition for the achievement of the post-2015 development agenda.
The Senegalese artist Baba Maal supported young people through a song - about "new society, new reality, new generation, new mentality," a chorus that delegates repeated.
In conclusion, PM Aminata Touré said that young people are the custodians of the continent’s development. "The time has come for an urgent discontinuity to make youths the present and the future of Africa; this should be a priority in our development policies.”
"The President of the Republic of Senegal asked me to tell you (youths) that he will carry your resolutions to the African Union summit this January then to the Francophonie (French-Speaking world) summit to be held in November 2014 and later to the General Assembly of the United Nations on the post 2015 development agenda," she announced.
The summit, which runs from 13rd to 17th January, 2014, is organized by the Network of Young Leaders from Africa and the Diaspora in the America and Europe for the MDGs ( ROJALNU ), in collaboration with UNFPA and the UNAIDS.
A key outcome expected from the Summit is a consensus document that will feature youth employment and entrepreneurship skills within the framework of the MDGs and the conceptual framework of the post-2015 development agenda.
