Africa at work: redefining employment for a changing continent

Digitisation and youth-oriented policies could offer Africa’s vast youth population the prospect of adequate and productive jobs.

Africa struggles to create enough decent jobs for its fast-growing and largely youthful population. On its current trajectory, the labour force will outstrip the supply of jobs, leaving many dependent on the informal sector for their livelihoods. This will likely push up irregular migration, crime and violent uprisings.

The Institute for Security Studies (ISS) African Futures’ analysis explores how improvements in manufacturing, agriculture, governance and education can shift the continent’s labour trajectory from informal survivalism to productivity-led growth. Speakers will unpack the critical role of digitisation, AI and youth policies in harnessing Africa’s demographic dividend while navigating the risks of premature deindustrialisation and jobless growth.

Read the full report on Africa's employment future.

This event is co-hosted by the ISS and the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD).

Moderator: Pamla Gopaul, Senior Programme Officer, Data Analyst, AUDA-NEPAD

Keynote address and panelist: Alexio Musindo, ILO Pretoria Director

Panelists:

• Dr Blessing Chipanda, Senior Researcher, African Futures & Innovation, ISS
• Abdel-Nasser Daoud Kinefour, Senior Programme Officer: Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, AUDA-NEPAD
• Grace Gondwe, Technical Officer, Employment, Labour Markets and Youth, ILO

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