Prime Minister Edouard Ngirente has said that Africa’s young population need to get necessary skills to be able to drive the continent’s economic transformation.
Ngirente said this on Sunday, November 10, during the closing ceremony of YouthConnekt Africa Summit which had been taking place in Kigali since Friday.
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"As we conclude this YouthConnekt Africa Summit, we celebrate the unity, vision and limitless potential of our continent youth. In fact, Africa's most important resource is its youth,” he said.
He recognised the continental initiative’s contribution to connecting African youth to address Africa’s major issues and accelerate socioeconomic transformation.
"As you may recall, back in the 2017 President Paul Kagame initiated the YouthConnect Africa Summit as a youth-focused platform to address critical development challenges by fostering ecosystem building, knowledge sharing and continental collaboration,” Ngirente said.
"We note with satisfaction that over the years through YouthConnekt, young people have demonstrated their potential to solve our pressing socioeconomic challenges. In this regard, our young people must be equipped with necessary skills to reach their full potential and play their critical role in driving our continent’s transformation.”
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To achieve this upskilling, the Prime Minister said there was need for targeted investments and strategic partnerships between all stakeholders to leverage the young people’s skills and innovation.
"Equally important, we need to align our education systems with the ever-changing global job market. As the world shifts toward digital and technology-driven jobs, investments in skilling our youth is imperative,” he noted.
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In addition, our countries need to continue streamlining policies, investing in infrastructure and creating enabling environment that promote growth and innovation for the youth.
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"The Government of Rwanda believes that innovation and creativity are key drivers in supporting and empowering talented youth to create jobs and drive economic growth,” Ngirente said.
"As reflected in our Vision 2050 and the National Strategy for Transformation (NST2), young people are at the centre of our transformative priorities to create innovative and productive jobs. As government we also encourage youth to step into leadership roles and contribute to our country’s growth and development.
"We have decided to put our young people at the forefront to achieve the economic development Rwandans deserve.”
The Prime Minister said that initiatives like Hanga PitchFest, which awards young people with innovative solutions, contribute to the needed upscaling of entrepreneurship and innovation.
The 2024 YouthConnekt Summit brought together about 3,000 young people, including entrepreneurs, leaders, innovators and students from across Africa. Opened by President Kagame, the event was attended by other dignitaries including Lesotho Prime Minister Samuel Ntsokoane Matekane and over 20 African ministers of youth.