(AfDB) - “Together, we have opportunities to create youth wealth and eradicate poverty, which is not a tradable commodity.” Akinwumi Adesina 

The President of the African Development Bank Group, Dr Akinwumi Adesina and the CEO of the Prince’s Trust International (PTI), Will Straw, have met in London on 29 November 2023 to explore strategic partnerships to scale up youth employment, human capital, and entrepreneurship opportunities.

With 1.4 billion people, Africa has the world’s largest proportion of unemployed and under-employed youth. More than 60% of the continent’s population is under the age of 30.

Dr Adesina said, “Too often, way too much lip service is given to youth programmes. That must change. Together, we have an opportunity to create youth wealth and eradicate poverty which is not a tradable commodity.”

Straw provided an overview of the Trust’s programmes globally and highlighted Ghana and Nigeria, where capacity building and entrepreneurial skills are having an impact on youth.

He said the Prince’s Trust International is committed to upscaling existing youth-based initiatives and co-hosting a youth-focused investment summit in 2024 in the UK, in conjunction with the African Development Bank.

Since 2015, the Prince’s Trust International, founded by HM King Charles (then the Prince of Wales), to tackle the global crisis of youth unemployment has supported more than 75,000 people. This follows 40 years of experience in the UK.

Straw added, “We are delighted to build this partnership with the African Development Bank. Together, we have a shared mission to support the next generation to develop the core skills needed to succeed in finding decent work.”

During the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding, Adesina described youth unemployment as a precursor to poverty which required a strategic multi-sectoral and multi-stakeholder holder approach.

The MOU commits both institutions to work together to identify and develop partnership opportunities to mainstream employability skills for technical and vocational education and training (TVET) projects funded by the Bank in countries of common interest. The Prince’s Trust will participate in the preparation, design, implementation and monitoring of TVET and skills development projects.

Others at the MOU signing included Prince’s Trust International Deputy Chair Michelle Pinggera, Trustee Arunma Oteh, and the Senior Advisor to the President of the Bank, Victor Oladokun.

The African Development Bank has launched Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Banks to provide financial and technical support businesses of young people. Liberia was the first to launch the Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Bank with an initial funding of $16 million approved by the African Development Bank’s Board of Directors. This is in addition to the Bank’s ENABLE youth programme and several other youth-based programmes.

The Prince’s Trust International runs 13 programmes in Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda, which are designed to match the skills and expectations of young people with existing employment and enterprise opportunities.