Incorporating and tapping into African youth skills and talents require recent data on the current state of young people and the skills and talents they possess.
African countries, the African Union, the United Nations, the African Development Bank, the World Bank, think tanks, and other stakeholders that have an interest in harnessing the youth dividend to bring prosperity and sustainable development to the African continent post- COVID-19 need to have real-time data.
These surveys should seek to capture the unique challenges that African youth have faced before and during the pandemic and get feedback on the future aspirations of the youth, including the type of jobs and employment opportunities they will seek post-COVID-19.
Once African countries have data, it is crucial to put together task forces consisting of diverse experts, including young experts, to analyze the survey data and use the answers to come up with blueprints and white papers on how best they can use the talents and skills of young people to develop the continent while creating employment opportunities.
Efforts towards engaging, empowering, and tapping onto African youth skills, talents, and capabilities as countries continue to battle COVID-19 and work towards reopening countries must be intensified and accelerated at local, national, and regional levels.
