Participants attending the 2015 World Economic Forum on Africa (WEF Africa) on Thursday highlighted youth development as key to economic development in the continent.
Opening the forum in Cape Town, South African President Jacob Zuma urged African countries to give a role to the youth to play.
“In our history the youth has played a very important role in contributing to and shaping South Africa, and they will continue to do so,” Zuma said.
He stressed the importance for African countries to have programmes to incorporate young people into the economy and empower them to lead.
Zuma said June is South Africa’s Youth Month during which the government will be interacting with the youth to address their concerns.
Africa has the largest labour force, mainly comprising youth. The empowerment of youth is one of the issues highlighted at the WEF Africa.
It is estimated that by 2040, Africa’s youth will make up 50 percent of the worlds young population, said Klaus Schwab, founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum (WEF), who was chairing the opening session.
In Africa, 18 million jobs are expected to be created on the continent annually to absorb the young people entering the labour market.
Ghana vice-president Kwesi Amissah-Arthur, who also answered questions during the plenary session of the forum, said Africa’s development largely depends on empowerment of the youth, including education and skill enhancement.
It was important that the youth be educated and become employed, Amissah-Arthur said.
The WEF Africa meeting was bringing together African and global leaders from government, business and civil society to take stock of progress over the last 25 years, share insights on the present landscape and identify innovative approaches to accelerate inclusive growth while bringing about sustainable development in the future.
The meeting is under the theme “Then and Now: Re-imagining Africa’s Future”. Enditem
-Xinhua
