Jacob’s Ladder Africa along with its affiliates were key conversation drivers at this year’s Skoll World Forum that took place on April 9th-12th, a platform that convenes annually to collaborate on social change.
Sellah Bogonko, Jacob’s Ladder Africa, Co-founder and CEO, spoke at a panel on Youth & Climate Positive Economic Growth in Africa, alongside Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr- Freetown City Council and C40 Cities, Alloysius Attah of Farmerline and Ifeoma Malo of Clean Technology Hub, who was also a part of the Pioneer cohort of the Africa Climate Ambassadors Programme (ACAP). The session was moderated by James Mwangi, of Africa Climate Ventures, whose organization forms the consortium under which ACAP operates.
One of the key takeaways from the conversation was the need for the youth to access intergenerational jobs that are dignified and will outlive them.
Building synergies and collaborating across a wide range of stakeholder groups is important in order to leverage the diverse efforts of governments, the private sector and communities for the success of any program or policy. A key call-out is the role that the government plays in exercising legislative powers and enacting policy; therefore calling for intentional efforts in collaborating with them.
In such a forum, it’s expected that the issue of unemployment would be raised and the Skoll Forum was no exception. Many could attest to the fact that the youth continue to entreat various parties for opportunities but haven’t always been successful. The role of sectors such as agriculture came to the fore, particularly in creating opportunities for the youth in forestry and food production.
Sellah highlighted the leadership narrative, especially that much has been said, but much less done due to poor leadership, which causes policies to fall through the cracks. Competent leadership that is focused on the task at hand would ensure that speeches and resolutions made in forums such as the Skoll World Forum would translate to action.
