OPINION: Invest in Young People to Harness Africa’s Demographic Dividend

Julitta Onabanjo is Regional Director, UNFPA East and Southern Africa. Benoit Kalasa is Regional Director, UNFPA West and Central Africa. Mohamed Abdel-Ahad is Regional Director, UNFPA North Africa and Arab States.By Julitta Onabanjo, Benoit Kalasa, and Mohamed Abdel-AhadJOHANNESBURG, Sep 21 2014 (IPS)Different issues will be competing for the attention of different African leaders attending the 69th United Nations General Assembly Special Session on International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) Beyond 2014 in New York on Sep 22.But the central question for Africa’s development today is this: How do we harness the dividend from the continent’s current youthful population?Solving this issue has never been more fundamental to Africa’s development than it is today.For decades many, African countries have come up with a variety of ‘development’ plans. But often missing in these documents is how best to harness the potential of the youthful population for the transformation of the continent.Therefore, strategic investment to harness the potential of the youth population can no longer wait.“African governments must know that efforts to create a demographic dividend are likely to fail as long as vast portions of young females are denied their rights, including their right to education, health and civil participation, and their reproductive rights”The groundswell for changeAfrica is undergoing important demographic changes, which provide immense econom...
Source: IPS Inter Press Service - Health - Category: Global & Universal Authors: Tags: Africa Development & Aid Education Gender Headlines Health Human Rights IPS UN: Inside the Glasshouse Population Poverty & MDGs Projects TerraViva United Nations Women's Health Addis Ababa Declaration on Population and Developmen Source Type: news