The covid-19 pandemic is very far from over and with that comes responsibility for the African youth. Making almost 60% of Africa’s population, the African youth is considered the continent’s future, and their participation is essential to foster democracy and development.
Despite the youth’s exclusion from transparency and accountability of government processes, their involvement, especially in public policymaking and participatory planning during this pandemic, can build Africa’s resilience and foster economic growth.
Africa’s GDP growth of 3.2% for 2020 is expected to fall to -0.8% due to the outbreak that has led to disruption in various sectors. From weakened institutions to devastated economies, the pandemic has exposed the continent's vulnerability in ways never imagined.
The weakened systems have attracted international organizations such as the World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Health Organization (WHO). These organizations have seen it wise to coordinate an effective response by providing foreign aid, especially to low-income countries, including those in Sub-Saharan Africa. This foreign aid is what the youth need to hold an account for if they have to access essential services.
For instance, when the government of Kenya launched a resourcing appeal to address both short term and long-term effects of the pandemic, the appeal mobilized millions of dollars estimated at $2 billion. Despite the mobilization, the Kenyan youth have been disproportionately affected by Covid-19 and still remain voiceless. The young people’s voices are still absent at the Covid-19 decision table. It is, therefore, the need of the hour for not only Kenyan youth, but African youth at large to elevate their voices while increasing accountability and effectiveness of public institutions.
How the young generation can demand accountability
The role of African youth is drastically changing. During this pandemic, young people need to be more vocal than they have ever been. They need to be actors in the funding processes and not spectators.
With prominent collaborations between the government and the media, youth movements can use music to create awareness and change. We have seen this happening before in countries such as Senegal.
When Senegal confirmed the first case of Covid-19 on March 2, 2020, it became clear that the general public needed sensitization. Public awareness surrounding the dangers of Covid-19 increased even more after the first deaths recordings.
The many deaths prompted young Senegalese musicians to join in with public awareness in local languages to inspire Senegalese resilience during the pandemic. Through their songs, they urged the government to do more and protect its people from the pandemic.
With the support of the World Bank, the creativity and resilience of the young people in Senegal continue to persist. World Bank continues to support community resilience by funding youth employability as Senegal navigates through this challenging time.
The youth can also demand accountability by carefully selecting news sources. Where the youth seek information matters. Carefully choosing sources of information is the best way to ensure accuracy.
According to a recent study, the youth are more likely to rely on social media as their primary source of information. Social media accounts for 88% of misinformation related to the pandemic. Due to such findings, it is clear that the youth need to rethink their sources of dissemination.
While there are plenty of news content generated from social media, it is only wise for young people to focus on facts. Facts will, in turn, create questions that the youth can ask the government for the sake of transparency and accountability.
In addition to this, the media can play a role by inviting the youth to share stories relating to corruption issues and the mismanagement of Covid-19 funds. Giving the younger generation a platform to inform decision making and share their thoughts is critical to delivering a more inclusive response.
Since the youth have complained of being excluded from informing decision making, specifically among government officials, the media's responsibility is to ensure the future generation are walking with people in authority as change agents.
This crisis is also an eye-opener for African countries to learn from Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries such as Germany, Estonia, Poland and Switzerland, who actively engage both younger and older citizens in e-participation initiatives. These initiatives use transparent government data to inform, engage and innovate in collaboration with citizens.
Engaging youth stakeholders from diverse backgrounds can rebuild trust, generate interest in politics, and integrate long-term considerations in crisis response and recovery strategies.
Why the youth are reluctant to demand accountability
The youth, for a long time, have suffered from the ravages of unemployment and inclusivity. Moreover, now that the governments are shifting energies to address the demands of the most vulnerable communities, the youth feel discriminated against and ignored.
The disconnection makes it hard for the youth to engage with leaders. The young people decry lack of access to information and resources despite the crisis presenting opportunities for them to change the prevailing patterns.
To enhance their stakes in leadership and governance, governments need to build the capacity of the youth by providing access to information and giving them a voice. Let them hold leaders accountable and demand for their rights.