The United Nations Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative
in Botswana, Anders Pedersen has said that between 2000 and 2008, Africa
created 73 million jobs, but only 16 million for young people aged between 15
and 24.
He said of Africa’s unemployed, 60 percent are young people and
youth unemployment rates are double those of adult unemployment.
To address the above, African leaders, international
organizations and civil society representatives will meet in Botswana’s
capital, Gaborone, for the next three days to discuss Africa’s diverse social
fabric and how it can serve as an asset for democracy and development.
Hosted by the President of Botswana, Lieutenant General
SeretseKhama Ian Khama, the eighth edition of the African Governance Forum,
organized by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the UN Economic
Commission for Africa and the African Union, will focus on maximizing the
participation of Africans from different backgrounds in elections and
decision-making.
The 250 participants at the forum will look at the criteria for
staging credible elections in Africa, such as peace, freedom from intimidation,
equality of access to resources for candidates, independent verification of
results and civil society involvement.
In doing so, they will focus on the importance of capitalizing
on Africa’s immense diversity – the continent is home to a rich mix of
cultures, ethnicities, religions and languages – ensuring all groups are
peacefully and actively involved in elections.
As the most marginalized populations in Sub-Saharan Africa,
youth and women will constitute a particular topic of focus.
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