ActionAid International Kenya and partners held a pre-YouLead Summit roundtable as a precursor to the main YouLead 2022 Summit that will be held in Arusha Tanzania as from 12th to 16th December at the East Africa Community Headquarters.
The roundtable sought to Spur Youth-led businesses to transition from Micro Enterprise to small Enterprise , Provide a platform for women and youth entrepreneurs to share experiences, opportunities and challenges of running businesses, and curate innovative approaches to sustainably grow their businesses and present opportunities for youth led SMEs for participating in cross-border trade under AfCFTA and formulate the recommendations of Women and Youth in Trade to be submitted to the AfCFTA Secretariat for consideration and incorporation into the Women and Youth in Trade Protocol.
“In this Pre-YouLead Summit 2022 themed ‘digital access to the future of work’ that aims at making Africa a free trade area. Youths should seize the opportunity, share their agenda, and actively be involved in the decision-making process” stated Susan Otieno, Executive Director, ActionAid International Kenya
The event was graced by Raymond Ochieng, Secretary of Youth Affairs at the State Department of Youth Affairs who emphasized on the need for the youth to embrace the digital space as a solution to unemployment.
“The digital space is a pathway that will lead us to what we want to achieve for our young people. It is a platform that young people must exploit.” Stated Raymond Ochieng
ActionAid International Kenya works with the Youth to claim and realize their constitutional rights through working within three main pillars: empowerment, solidarity, and campaigning.
Author: Ezra Kiriago (Communications Coordinator ActionAid Kenya)