Africa’s young population is often described as a demographic dividend: a potential economic advantage if young people can gain the skills and jobs needed to contribute productively. But for many young people, that promise is slipping away. They leave school or training and enter labour markets where formal jobs are scarce and public programmes too…
Young people in low- and middle-income countries appear generally more optimistic about how AI can enhance their work prospects and social lives than their western peers, according to our new survey of people in ten countries in Africa and South Asia. While debates in higher-income countries often focus on job losses, misinformation and mental health…
Fertility rates are falling worldwide not because young people are rejecting marriage, children or family life but because many are facing economic and housing constraints. That’s among the findings of a major new survey by the UN reproductive and sexual health agency, UNFPA, which also challenges myths surrounding the so-called “global baby bust”. The Demographic…
Young people working on promoting peace in some of the world’s most fragile and polarized places say financial support remains essential, but money alone will not sustain their efforts to organize youth to participate in peacebuilding. As conflicts around the world continue to proliferate, a group of young UN peacebuilders met at UN Headquarters on…
Transactional sex, defined as the exchange of sex for money, food, or favours, is common among young people in Africa. Studies have reported that about 10% of those aged 15-24 have engaged in this exchange in South Africa, 23% in Nigeria and 25% in Uganda. The behaviour has been linked to negative consequences such as…
AI should change how we train young talent, not whether we hire it. As South Africa marks Youth Day on 16 June, the country continues to face one of its biggest economic challenges – helping young people find meaningful work. According to Statistics South Africa’s latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey, 4.7 million South Africans aged…
Children aged less than five years face almost three times the risk of illness from unsafe food than older children and adults, according to new estimates released today by the World Health Organization (WHO). Despite being just 9% of the global population, young children suffer from nearly one third of all cases of foodborne diseases,…
Africa has seen this before. The revolutionary brothers who once shared prison cells, campaign stages, liberation trenches and political slogans eventually arrive at the same destination: the brutal crossroads of power. From Robert Mugabe and Emmerson Mnangagwa in Zimbabwe, to Salva Kiir and Riek Machar in South Sudan, to the dramatic fallout between Julius Malema…
Tiro Moyo, Gerhard Vosloo and Rudra Patel take on global challenges at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair, showcasing innovation in AI, space science and biomedical research. (Image supplied) Three South African high school learners will represent the country at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) in the US next month, presenting…
Women still make up less than a third of the world’s workforce in STEM. (Image source: 123RF) Minister Solly Malatsi has emphasised the critical need for inclusive growth within the ICT sector, drawing attention to the need for more girls and women in the ICT sector. Malatsi made the comments at the second annual Girls…
