NEW YORK, USA – His Majesty the King has made three important calls to all African governments, the private sector, and the diaspora for the youth. In his first call, he has urged them to play a leading role in supporting a new platform spearheaded by the African Union (AU), the government of Ethiopia and the AeTrade group called the Africa Job Creation Forum.
It is called the Africa Strategic Alliance Investment Alliance (ASIA) which held a meeting on Monday on the sidelines of the 78th session of the United Nations general assembly. Eswatini holds the chairmanship of the AeTrade Group Southern African region and His Majesty was represented by the Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry Manqoba Khumalo at the event.
Its main aim is to harness digital technologies to create an additional 80–125 million jobs by building a strong ecosystem to support micro, small and medium-sized enterprises that will become the engines of economic growth and major drivers of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) implementation.
His Majesty noted that due to the vast territory of 33 million square kilometres, which presents challenges with connectivity and logistics, the most promising way for trade is through digital trade. He said the support for the ASIA forum was critical because it would assist in addressing some of the challenges that the continent is facing in terms of creating job opportunities for the youth.
In his second appeal, he requested that the international community and all development partners to embrace ASIA and find ways to collaborate, invest in, or support its institutional development at the early stages of its journey. “I commend the participation of eminent leaders from the global community, in particular Queen Maxima, whose advocacy and tremendous network can assist us in getting to all the right platforms for advocacy as well as action,” he said.
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He thanked the OECD Development Centre for agreeing to build partnerships and continue providing valuable information. Also commended was His Excellency Hailemariam Desalegn, for his contribution in providing leadership for the organisation for the past five years as Patron and now as Chairman of the Board of Directors. Thirdly, the King commended the African Union’s unwavering support for the work of the Ae Trade group with AU member states as well as diverse stakeholders.
“We are witnessing an example of innovative partnerships between AUC, OECD and the AeTrade group today. I wish to encourage more partnerships to be born out of this gathering,” he urged.
During the occasion to unveil the Africa Strategic Investment Alliance (ASIA), the king noted that the initiative had handsome dividends for the youth of the African continent.
He said that according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), it is projected that by 2035, there will be more young Africans entering the workforce each year than in the rest of the world combined. “There is a significant gap between the number of young people seeking work and the limited opportunities available to them, with 19 million graduates and only 3 million job opportunities annually.
“Moreover, there is a mismatch between the skills of young people entering the workforce and the needs of employers. This is clearly an unsustainable path for African countries, and it also has significant global implications.
He said despite these challenges, the continent had huge potential that could be harnessed. The king then urged countries to pledge to support the Asia Foundation. He further emphasised that the best way to navigate the future was to hold hands as the United Nations family by simply following the pathway outlined in the AU’s Agenda 2063 and the UN’s Agenda 2030.
“Africa reaffirms her commitment to finding ways to mobilise innovative finance to be able to achieve our common goals. We challenge our friends from around the world to walk the walk with us, and in this way, nobody shall be left behind,” he said.
