The Sahel is literally a youthful region, with two thirds of its population being young vibrant people, 46 to 50 percent of the region’s population under 15 years old, and under 24 said to number above 230 million.
This indeed is an asset and represents great hope for the future of the region.
Recognizing the power of Africa’s youth, African Union member states adopted in 2006 the African Youth Charter to reaffirm their commitment to the development of the continent’s population between the ages 14 and 35 years old, and to ensure the participation and involvement of young people in the development agenda of Africa.
The United Nations Integrated Strategy of the Sahel (UNISS) also underscores a focus on youth as critical to addressing root causes of the multifaced challenges in Sahel. Thus, youth empowerment constitutes one of the priority areas of intervention of its accompanying United Nations Support Plan (UNSP). Young women and men of the Sahel have shown incredible resilience and creativity in various fields. In this edition of the newsletter, we will showcase just a few initiatives led by youth. These are innovative, effective and inclusive responses from nine (9) young men and women who are real actors of change in the Sahel, tackling the challenges facing their countries and making a difference in their communities.
Please note that from where they come from, there are many more.So, kindly allow us to take you on a journey from Cameroon, Guinea, Mauritania, Niger to Senegal, where we will be highlighting the transformative actions of youth, with a focus on climate resilient agriculture, transformation and technology to protect the environment.
In this same month in conjunction with Generation Unlimited (GEN-U), a global multi-sector partnership set up to meet the urgent need for expanded education, training and employment opportunities for young people, we have jointly, with the active participation of United Nations Agencies, Funds and Programmes, started the process of establishing a Generation Unlimited Sahel! More on this, inside this newsletter.
In light of all of the above and more, we dedicate this edition of the newsletter to all the brave young people who are contributing to building strong foundations for thriving Sahelian societies, sparing no effort to ensure a better future for themselves and their countries.
Thus, I would like to express my sincere gratitude and appreciation to Moussa, Teslem, Almamy, Issoufa, Fanna, Mariana, Fatima, Rodrigue and Larissa for sharing their stories and for inspiring other young people and all of us.