The much awaited YouthConnekt Africa Summit has finally kicked off in Accra with a cross section of the youth on the continent converging at the Accra International conference centre on Wednesday October 20, 2021.
The three day summit is on the theme “Africa Beyond Aid : Positioning the Youth for the Post Covid Economy and AfCFTA Opportunities “and expected to connect the youth from across the continent with policy makers, programme leaders, private sector participants, government and non governmental organisations to develop youth empowerment implementation strategies through planned partnerships.
In a speech delivered by the Minister for Youth and Sports, Hon Mustapha Ussif during the opening of the Summit he noted that the primary objective of the event was to empower the teeming youth into prosperous citizens and connect them to socio-economic transformation through technology, innovations, opportunities, knowledge among others.
According to the Minister, Africa is reported to have the fastest growing youth population in the world which means that the greatest resources isn’t the gold, diamond, cocoa, timber or other natural resources but the energetic and determined youth.
He called on leaders across Africa to endeavour to include the youth in government development planning activities.
The Minister indicated that the summit seeks to empower the youth through life changing opportunities since a country has dividend to receive based on how efficient the youth are managed.
The summit is scheduled to end on Friday October 22, 2021 after various panel discussions and youth related activities to share ideas and brainstorm on the way forward of the development of the youth.