Tony Elumelu Foundation has partnered with Belgium, Canada, Niger, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), International Labour Organisation (ILO), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) among others to launch the Generation Unlimited Sahel.
Known for short as GenU Sahel, the programme will address the critical role of youths in contributing to peace, security, stability and economic growth in the region.
The countries in the Sahel include Senegal, Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Chad, Sudan and Eritrea.
The GenU Sahel Strategy was launched during a high-level event held virtually on Monday by the UN deputy secretary-general, Amina Mohamed, marking the beginning of a new and improved way of working with and for Sahelian youth.
At the event hosted by Adebola Williams and Tony Elumelu’s daughter Oge, those who gave remarks included Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau; President of Niger Republic, Mohamed Bazoum; Prime Minister of Belgium, Alexander De Croo; Amina Mohammed; executive director of UNICEF, Henrietta Fore; UNDP administrator, Achim Steiner; chairperson of the African Union Commission, Moussa Mahamat; and the UN secretary general’s envoy on youth, Jayathma Wickramanayake.
Sports personalities including Sadio Mane who plays for Senegal and Liverpool; and sprinter Allyson Felix also gave remarks.
Speaking at the launch, chairman, United Bank for Africa Group, Tony Elumelu, said the only solution to the challenges facing communities and countries in the Sahel region, including Nigeria, is for people to be empowered.
He warned that poverty anywhere remained a threat to people everywhere, noting that there was the need for collective effort to find a lasting solution to the intractable crisis in the region.
Elumelu, who highlighted the various ways the Tony Elumelu Foundation that he founded had empowered many young people in the region, said, “Generation Unlimited (GenU) Sahel will upscale youth programmes and initiatives in the Sahel region under the aegis of the United Nations Secretary General’s Special Coordinator for the Sahel and the GenU CEO.
“The public and private sector will partner with youths to connect 100 million Sahelian youths, 50 per cent of whom are young women, to skilling, employment, entrepreneurship and social impact opportunities by 2030.
“More than two million people in this region have been forced to flee their homes, with millions more losing their sources of livelihoods. Resources are scarce and opportunities are limited, leading to even more tensions and conflict between communities in the Sahel.”
He added, “A collective effort is needed to find a lasting solution to this intractable crisis. Empowering and investing in our people, especially our young ones in the Sahel, to give them economic hope and opportunity is the only solution.”
Niyi Ojuolape of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Ghana moderated a discourse among six young persons on what can be done to improve the life of youths in the region.
The discussants included CEO of Jobberman, Rolake Rosiji; Sobel Ngom; Sefora Kodjo; Ousman Touray among others.
