Phone: +254 757 554 355
Email:
ayc@auyc.org
AYC at ECOWAS Non-State Actors Conference on Terrorism in ECOWAS region
On 26-27 August 2019 in Niamey, Niger our Commissioner of Political Affairs, Mr. Moussa Fara Diop and Executive Secretary, Mr. Kawsu Sillah attended the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Regional “Non-State Actors Conference on Curbing Terrorism and Violent Extremism” in ECOWAS region.
A two-day civilian stakeholders meeting is organised by ECOWAS Commission in partnership with Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
It brought together 100 civil society representatives mainly from traditional and religious groups, youth, women, non-governmental organisations and others from the fifteen ECOWAS Member States including Cameroun, Chad and Mauritania to discuss the growing threats of terrorism, violent extremism and inter-communal clashes in the Sahel Region.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Madame Lamido Ousseini Salamatou Bala Goga, the Minister of State for African Integration and Nigeriens Abroad of Niger emphasized that terrorism constitute the major threat to peace and security in the region and has become a trans-border threat that is spreading to other countries. Thus the needy for all parties at the state and non-state levels to find solutions to ending the menace of terrorism.
Madam Finda E.M. Koroma, the Vice President of the ECOWAS Commission in her opening remarks commended the efforts and determination of His Excellency Mahamadou Issoufou, President of the Republic of Niger and Chairman of the Authority of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government, in resolving security issues and terrorism in the Sahel region in particular.
“This threat of terrorism, which is the topic of our meeting over the next two days, is of great concern to us in West Africa. Our region is regularly targeted by terrorist incidents perpetrated almost on a daily basis,” She said.
Vice President Koroma stressed the need to address the root causes of radicalisation and violent extremism in other to fight and eradicated terrorism in the ECOWAS Region.
Highlighting the negative effects of violent extremism and its threats to human development, Gen. Francis A. Behanzin, Commissioner of Political Affairs, Peace and Security of the ECOWAS Commission outlined that the Niamey meeting provides opportunity for stakeholders in the region to participate in finding solutions to ending terrorism in the region.
He underlined the critical role to be played by civil society stakeholders and encouraged them to propose a strategy that can be adopted by the region to eradicate radicalisation and violent extremism.
Madam Ruby Sandhu-Rojon, Deputy Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General, United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS) stated that their participation at the meeting demonstrates UNOWAS solidarity and commitment to putting an end to the scourge of terrorism in the region.
“No country or actor can win this fight alone. Also, we need even more constructive partnerships,” She said.
Also speaking at the opening, Madam Diana Louise Ofwona, Resident Representative, UNDP Niger, while reading a statement on behalf of Madam Ahunna Eziakonwa, the Assistant Administrator and Director, UNDP Regional Bureau for Africa, stressed that UNDP is trying to achieve a regional approach of shared responsibility, through the Humanitarian for Peace and Security development initiative.
The Stakeholders’ meeting will be followed by a Joint Meeting of the Chiefs of Defence Staff, Chiefs of Security and Intelligence Services on Terrorism on the 28th and 29th of August 2019 in Niamey.
These two meetings are in preparation for the Ministerial meeting on the 12th of September 2019 in Ouagadougou, and then followed by the Extraordinary Summit of ECOWAS Heads and Government on Terrorism on the 14th of September 2019.
Full report, please view ECOWAS website from this link: https://www.ecowas.int/civilian-stakeholders-meet-on-terrorism-and-violent-extremism-in-the-ecowas-region/
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AYC Webinar on Preparing Youth for the Future of Work
African Youth Commission in collaboration with Plan International Regional Hub, Plan RESA Country Offices, Africa Youth Trust, Office of the African Union Envoy on Youth and International Organisation of Employers, Forum for African Women Educationalists and other partners, as part of activities marking the International Youth Day 2019, jointly organised Twitter Chat and Webinar on ‘Preparing Youth for Future of Work’ with particular focus on inclusion of girl and young women.
The theme for 2019 International Youth Day is ”Transforming Education”. In the webinar will seek to:
1. Spotlight Young ‘Education Transformers’ innovations across the region
2. Highlight partnership opportunities between youth-led networks, governments, AU/UN agencies and other education stakeholders to transform education
3. Provide a platform for African youth to voice their demands to policy makers as well as highlight their roles and contributions in transforming education to Prepare Youth for Future of Work.
The webinar will be preceded by a Twitter chat in a moderated panel to highlight the importance of transforming education in preparing the young men and women in Africa for the Future of Work. This webinar will take place on 12th August 2019 at 13h00-14.30pm EAT. To participate in the webinar, join the meeting through this GoToMeeting link https://www.gotomeet.me/youthandfutureofwork
OFFICIAL LAUNCHING OF AYC SENEGAL NATIONAL CONSORTIUM
Following the successful inauguration of the Gambia, Kenya and Uganda National Consortiums last year 2018, the AYC is set to officially launch its Consortium in Senegal with the Junior Chamber International (JCI) Dakar as pioneer member. JCI Dakar is part of JCI global movement that challenges the status quo by inspiring young people to recognize their responsibility to create a better world and empower them to drive change.
The official launch is in line with the AYC’s core mandate and founding principles to foster synergies among youth and youth organisations, build capacities of youth-led and youth-serving organisations to provide youth friendly space and amplify youth voices in current policy and decision making processes. Since its inception in 2013, the AYC has been in the forefront promoting Pan-Africanism, mobilizing young people for African Unity and Development through influencing youth inclusion, participation and engagement in the implementation of the Africa 2063 Agenda as well the UN Agenda 2030 for sustainable development, supporting advocacy actions on the ratification and implementation of the African Youth Charter, other youth rights-based legal instruments and contributing to advancing the AU Shared Values in African countries and diaspora.
The ceremony will be officiated by Ms. Natalie Sonia Mukundane, Executive Chairperson of the AYC and graced by youth leaders, government officials, representatives from youth civil society and non-governmental organisations, UN agencies, other partner agencies and youth development actors in Dakar, Senegal.
With this launch, Senegal becomes the fourth country in Africa officially mandated to implement AYC activities at national level in alignment with AYC Strategic Plan 2018-2020, which outlines practical steps to create decent job and entrepreneurship opportunities for young people, improve health services including comprehensive sexuality education in formal and non-formal education, promote human rights and deliver good governance, accountability and social cohesion at all levels as well as encourage inclusion and active participation of youth in the maintenance of peace and security in the country, at regional and continental levels.
The launch will take place on Saturday 27th July 2019 from 9:00am at the Goree Institute located at Villa Malolo, 1 rue du jardin Ile de Gorée – BP 05.
AYC Side Event: United for Peace: Empowering African Youth in the Implementation of SDG 16
The High-level Political Forum(HLPF) will be held from 9 to 18 July 2019 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. The HLPF will serve as a central platform for the follow-up and review of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals, under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). The theme will be “Empowering people and ensuring inclusiveness and equality.” The focus will be on reviewingthe progress and implementation of a specific set of SDGs: Goal 4, Quality Education; Goal 8, Decent Work and Economic Growth; Goal 10, Reduced Inequalities; Goal 13, Climate Action; Goal 16, Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions; and Goal 17, Partnerships for the Goals.
Today, the world is the youngest it has ever been with over one billion youth, of which 600 million live in violence- and conflict- affected areas. Of the approximately 1.4 billion people worldwide living in countries impacted by crime, violence, conflict and fragility, 50 per cent are under the age of 20. In 2016, children under the age of 18 constituted 51 percent of the refugee population, compared to just 31 per cent of the global population. Forced displacement has mainly affected developing nations, which currently host the majority of the forcibly displaced.
During the side event, participants will look at the theme of the HLPF, “Empowering people and ensuring inclusiveness and equality”, from a youth perspective. Participants will identify mechanisms that empower youth,discuss youth’s role in peace and security, and advance collaboration efforts in the implementation and localization of SDG 16, including how it is relates to SDG 4. The discussions will also focus on how education can play a key role in the implementation of SDG 16. Achieving inclusive and equitable quality education for all will require increasing efforts, especially in sub-Saharan Africa for vulnerable populations, including persons with disabilities, indigenous people, refugee children and poor children in rural areas. UNODC’s Education for Justice (E4J) initiative – under the Global Programme for the Implementation of the Doha Declaration – has been developed to create and disseminate education materials in UNODC mandated areas of crime prevention and criminal justice across the primary, secondary and tertiary education levels. Overall, the objective is to empower youth to become socially responsible global citizens with a sound moral and ethical compass who are prepared to tackle the world’s challenges related to the rule of law, particularly on SDG 16 and other related Sustainable Development Goals.
This session will build on the previous UNODC and The Gambia National Youth Council joint side event that took place in Banjul, The Gambia during the AYC 3rd Pan African Youth Conference on African Unity and Development which brought together youth representatives from across Africa to engage in a dialogue with young African leaders, who are involved in government, policymaking and youth empowerment initiatives. As an independent Pan-African youth network founded by young leaders to foster synergies among youth and youth organizations, The Africa Youth Commission (AYC) will be a key partner in the side event. AYC is committed to providing a space and voice for youth to be key partners in the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the UN Agenda 2030; Sustainable Development Goals, UNSCR2250 and the Africa 2063 Agenda.
The Gambia National Youth Council, Office of The African Union Youth Envoy, The United Nations Major Group for Children and Youth will also play a significant role in the side-event.
AYC at 2019 United Nations Public Service Forum
AYC is pleased to have participated in the 2019 United Nations Public Service Forum, held on 24-26 June 2019 in Baku, Azerbaijan.
We are represented by our Executive Chairperson, Ms. Natalie Sonia Mukundane Kyamutetera. During the Forum, Ms. Mukundane delivered a presentation on “Engaging African Youth effectively in Decision Making processes and Public Service delivery”.
In addition, she moderated a Ministerial Roundtable on “Enhancing Engagement of Vulnerable Groups in Decision-Making and Public Service Delivery”.
AYC at Regional Trade Forum for West and Central Africa
The Africa Forum on “AfCFTA in motion: Taking Africa’s integration to the next level for a prosperous continent”, co-organized by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), the European Union, and the Government of Republic of Senegal, in collaboration with the African Union Commission (AUC). The Forum took place at King Fahd Hotel in Dakar, Senegal, on 24 to 25 June 2019.
By signing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), African leaders took a giant step forward for the development of the continent, signaling that the ideals in the Abuja Treaty on the African Economic Community will now be realized. The AfCFTA has the potential to generate a range of benefits through supporting trade creation, structural transformation, productive employment and poverty reduction. We are now on a clear path to the realization of these benefits with the ratification by the required 22 signatories.
It is in this context that the forum is jointly organized and brought together ministers and policy makers, private sector, civil society, academia, international organizations and other influential stakeholders from across the continent, to discuss what is required to ensure that the AfCFTA becomes a reality and truly contributes to Africa’s socio-economic development. The forum will, in addition, provide an opportunity to learn, share, and actively engage and network with intra-African actors across a diverse range of different sectors.
We are represented by Ms. Christine Sayo, AYC Director of Advocacy and Communications. Ms. Sayo this afternoon spoke in ‘’Women and Youth Business Roundtable’’ where the panel addressed the following fundamental questions:
• What skills must Africa’s youth be equipped with to ensure that they are positioned to take advantage of these opportunities?
• What supportive measures, such as access to subsidized credit, capacity development and business mentoring opportunities, will be required?
• How will they be paid for and by whom?
Download Programme Guide
AYC participated in Gamal Abdel Nasser Transformational Leadership Fellowship
Gamal Abdel Nasser Transformational Leadership is the first (African by African) Fellowship organized by African Youth Bureau in collaboration with Pan-African Youth Union and other partners under the auspices of the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Arab Republic of Egypt.
The initiative brought together young African leaders from all parts of Africa and diverse background to discuss the role of African youth in promoting youth leadership in socio-economic and political development of the African continent. It complements the African Union’s “Africa Unite for Youth: Bridging the Gap and Reaching out to African Youth the 1 Million By 2021 Initiative” launched by H.E. Moussa Faki Mahamat, Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC) during the second African Youth Forum, held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from 24 to 26 April 2019.
Arab Republic of Egypt as 2019 President of the African Union is committed to achieving the objectives of African Union and the implementation of the Million by 2021 Initiative which seeks to empower and build the capacities of one million young Africans in the areas of education, employment, entrepreneurship and participation in policy and decision making processes by 2021.
Representing the AYC, Mr. Flomo Mau Maiwo, Deputy Executive Chairperson shared his experience and the contribution of AYC in harnessing the talent and potential of African youth to realize the demographic dividend as well as our collective aspirations of the Africa 2063 Agenda for the Africa We Want.
The intensive 15-days fellowship was started on June 8th and closed on June 22nd 2019 in the capital city of Egypt, Cairo. Fellows took part in interactive discussions and public lectures on promotion African values through self-reliance, solidarity, hard work, collective prosperity, building on the African successes, experiences and best practices for the formulation of the African model of transformation and development. In addition, they participated in site visits, high level engagement with ministers, policy makers, civil society actors, business community, and other distinguished personalities.
Mr. Mohammed Abdualshakoor, former AYC Commissioner of Peace and Security from Republic of Sudan and some members of AYC also attended the fellowship.
AYC at Restless Development’s African Youth Powering the SDGs Webinar
AYC in collaboration with Restless Development and other partners organised a joint webinar which brought together young people from across the Africa Region to share their reflections on the main outcomes and agreed actions from the African Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (ARFSD) that took place in Marrakech, Morocco from 16 – 18 April.
This interactive webinar ‘A Journey of SDG Accountability from Marrakech to New York’ was held on May 16th, 2019 at 10am GMT, and the second in its kind, the regional webinar series of the ‘African Youth: Powering the SDGs’. The discussion was led by young people who participated in the preparatory process of the fifth ARFSD and attended the Forum in person.
Objectives:
- Share outcomes from the ARFSD and outline relevant implications and opportunities for young people in the region in terms of SDG implementation, follow up and review;
- Increase awareness and understanding towards the HLPF as a key decision making and influencing forum for SDG follow up and review;
- Create opportunities to strengthen youth networks and collaboration at national and regional levels between young people on SDG follow up, review and reporting- particularly towards the HLPF.
Africa is home to over 1.2 billion people, over 60% of whom fall below the age of 25. Youth are often seen as the future. We know we are more than the future, we are the today. The achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030 will depend on us, young people, playing a respected and formal role in tracking their implementation and ensuring governments remain accountable to the commitments they have made. It is therefore in our view critical that young people continue to engage in the Africa Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (ARFSD) and the High Level Political Forum (HLPF), to ensure our governments are reporting accurately and openly on the SDGs – the achievements, but also the failures and challenges that need to be addressed. At these Forums we further need to ensure that the roles of young people as lead implementers and influencers of the Goals are fully recognised and supported.
Our Executive Secretary, Mr. Kawsu Sillah, speaking at the webinar says, ”the role of young people is not just to hold our governments accountable to the SDGs, but young people are taking action across the region to implement the Goals”. He cited the example of Africa Youth SDGs Forum. He added that, National consortiums and networks like the Africa Youth Commission has an important role to play in following up with governments on key outcomes.
Mr. Keith Andere, AYC Director of Programmes delivered a presentation on how young people can get engaged and influence decision through UN Major Group of Children and Youth (UN MGCY). ”Young people have the ability to self organise for the ARFSD, for example through officially mandated networks like the UN Major Group of Children and Youth, but we need to be given the opportunity, space and crucially the funding to fully participate and share our recommendations and insights alongside governments to ensure our voices are heard”, Mr. Andere said.
For more, listen to the webinar here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U2SZ9JxKGfw
AYC Youth Capacity Building Workshop in Malawi
With support from IOE – International Organisation of Employers, the AYC will convene 10 representatives from its national consortium in West, East, Central and Southern Africa for a 2-day capacity building workshop on project development and resource mobilisation.
Following the successful hosting of IOE side event on ‘’The Future of Work and Jobs in Africa’’ at 3rd Pan-African Youth Conference on African Unity and Development held in Banjul in March 2019, the IOE has commit its partnership with AYC to address employment and skills concerns of African youth.
This workshop is organised within the framework of this existing partnership and aimed to achieve the following objectives and outcomes:
Objective:
- Build the capacity of selected national consortium to develop and implement projects within their respective countries successfully.
- To enhance the understanding of the consortiums (roles and expectations) among members in line with the AYC Strategic Plan 2018-2020)
- Encourage national consortium to align their in-country projects, programs and activities to the priority areas of AYC strategic plan,
- Inspire ownership and enhance the understanding of national consortium members of AYC strategic plan,
- Strengthen the resource mobilisation capacity of national consortium to source the needed financing for their in-country projects and activities,
- Provide peer learning platform allowing national consortium members to share knowledge and experiences relating to implementation of AYC strategy at in-country level,
- Meet IOE general employers’ and discuss how to ensure sustainability of in-country projects and activities of national consortium through partnerships at national, regional and continental levels,
- Enhance the advocacy, communication and networking skills of selected national consortium to advocate, communicate and work together on developmental challenges facing their countries and the continent.
Outcomes:
- Participants are equipped with tools needed to develop and manage their in-country projects and activities effectively,
- Increased level of knowledge and awareness of the AYC, its vision and the strategic plan 2018 – 2020 among the national consortium members,
- Increased capabilities of the members to formulate, implement, monitor and evaluate their in-country projects and activities independently,
- In-country projects/activities of participating national consortium are aligned to the priority areas of AYC strategic plan 2018-2020,
- Participants acquired hands-on experience skills on project development and management, and have the ability to initiate and mobilise resources for their in-country projects/activities,
- Build synergies with IOE general employers’ and possible areas of collaboration explored,
- Advocacy, communication and network skills of participants are enhanced.
The workshop will take place at Sunbird Capital Hotel in Lilongwe, Malawi in parallel with 43rd Annual Conference of IOE members from East, Southern and Central Africa. Our participants will take part in IOE conference on the 3-4 June and join the AYC workshop on 4-5 June.
Download Speech of AYC Executive Chairperson, Ms. Natalie Sonia Mukundane
Download Speech of Mr. Dingiswayo Jere, CEO National Youth Council of Malawi
Kampala Press Conference on AYC Strategic Plan 2018-2020 and 2019 Work Plan of AYC Uganda National Consortium
Ms. Natalie Sonia Mukundane, Executive Chairperson of the AYC is in Kampala today, May 14th, 2019 to brief the press on the priority areas of AYC Strategic Plan 2018-2020 and 2019 Work Plan of AYC Uganda National Consortium to galvanize support and partnership for the operation of the consortium in Uganda.
In addition, madam chairperson will have bilateral meetings with Government officials, CSOs, development partners and youth leaders to present AYC Uganda National Consortium and discuss possible areas of collaboration. This is part of our many efforts to intensify the presence of AYC in Uganda.