3. JOSHUA JOHN INIOLUWA - 3RD PLACE



INTRODUCTION

“Africa is not a country, but it is a continent like none other. It has that which is elegantly vast or awfully little.”

L. Douglas Wilder

If potential was a place, its other name would be Africa: from the gold mines of South Africa to the cobalt deposits of the Democratic Republic of Congo; from the oil-rich plains of Nigeria’s Niger Delta to the uranium deposits in the Republic of the Niger. Africa is home to an endless sea of mineral resources. To complete this match for economic prosperity undoubtedly made in heaven, Africa is home to a vibrant population with 454 million young individuals aged 15 – 34 years. If the achievement of socio-economic development was equivalent to starting a fire, Africa would have enough fuel and a flaming torch – or so it seems. 

Against this backdrop of endless possibilities – about one-third of the world’s mineral deposits and the second highest population of young people aged 15 to 34 years – emerges a baffling paradox. Africa is riddled with persistent socio-economic crises. Arguably, one of our leading problems is youth unemployment; there are an estimated 34.8 million unemployed African youths. To put this in perspective, the current youth unemployment rate in Southern Africa is a whopping 27.9% compared to the world average of 5.5%. This predominance of unemployed and underemployed youths constitutes a significant problem in itself and creates perennial problems of poverty, low quality of life, insecurity, instability and sluggish economic development.

BODY 

The African continent has adopted a grand plan for its development to catch up with the rest of the world and surpass it. The noble Agenda 2063 provides a vision for the “Africa we want” in the next 4 decades. To ensure the success of this agenda, we must develop and implement actionable policy solutions to Africa’s youth unemployment problem by doing the following:  

Establishing and Implementing Local Content: Local content can be described as “the value that an extraction project brings to the local, regional or national economy beyond the resource revenues.” This extra value is gotten by establishing minimum standards for local participation: good-paying jobs for locals, supply chain preferences for local industries, transfer of intellectual property, etc. When properly implemented, local content boosts youth employment and encourages the transfer of intellectual and technical skills from foreign experts to citizens of African countries. 

Countries like Nigeria have implemented this policy with reasonable success. Nonetheless, a sound policy framework and effective monitoring systems must be in place to maximize the fulfilment of the objectives local content. 

Developing Human Capital: Most mines and oil fields in Africa are built and maintained by foreign experts. The absence of adequately skilled manpower poses severe limitations to the extent to which African youths can participate in the extractive and refining sectors. The solution to this problem lies in developing Africa’s workforce and by extension its youth through curriculum revisions to meet up with global standards and requirements as well as merit and interest based admission and training practices. Furthermore, adequate health-care service provision is essential for sustaining a vibrant workforce of youths. It has been well established that a skilled and effective workforce is paramount for attracting and maintaining foreign investment and sustainable development.  

The protection of workers’ rights must also be taken into consideration. African governments must address obsolete or poorly enforced laws which give room for workplace maltreatment, late or non-payment of living wages, dangerous work conditions and indiscriminate hiring and firing practices. 

Adding Value: A major setback for the maximisation of Africa’s mineral reserves is the exportation of unprocessed minerals. For instance, Nigeria, one of Africa’s largest producers of crude oil, imports refined petroleum products, amounting to a 43 billion-dollar trade deficit for crude oil importation in 2020. Furthermore, the prices of unprocessed minerals are subject to wide fluctuations in global markets. Significant dips in price could affect a country’s revenue, thereby limiting the government’s ability to pay salaries and carry out projects. 

The answer to this problem lies in adding value – refining products to finished or semi-finished goods which are more valuable. To add value, industries must be established, which translates to increased opportunities for training and employment. Furthermore, the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) which began operation in January 2021 creates a market spanning over 30 countries. In essence, there is a ready continental market for goods; a development which will boost trading and provide the attendant benefits of economic growth. 

Investing in Research and Development: In a bid to accelerate the industrialisation of African economies, the importance of research and development cannot be overemphasised. This often neglected part of education and development is responsible for technological advancements that have heralded industrial revolutions across the world. For Africa’s youth to take full advantage of her mineral resources, we must stimulate and execute intensive research to improve on existing technologies and develop ingenious methods to extract, refine and process mineral resources. Value addition relies heavily on technological innovation. Moreover, intellectual property laws must be updated to reflect global trends and provide enough incentive for developing creative solutions and innovations.  

Adopting a holistic Approach to Providing Soft and Hard Infrastructure: Many of the barriers to Africa’s industrialisation are traceable to the failures of soft infrastructure like government and administrative services, law enforcement, financial services and healthcare which translate to a deficit of hard infrastructure such as roads, railway lines, telecommunications, and schools, among others. There is an urgent need to address the lack of political will by training and electing young, focused and incorruptible leaders. Educational reforms, investment in research and development, industrialisation and other recommendation will require funding – an aspect where the African Development Bank can contribute significantly. 

CONCLUSION

Africa’s potential for sustainable economic development is second to none. By utilising sound local content policies, developing human capital, adding value and adopting a holistic approach to governance, we can achieve and sustain significant socio-economic development in our continent.



References 

 Rocca C & Schultes I. (2020). Africa’s Youth: Action Needed Now to Support Africa’s Greatest Asset. Retrieved from https://mo.ibrahim.foundation/sites/default/files/2020-08/international-youth-day-research-brief.pdf/ 


United Nations Economic Commission for Africa. (2018, Jan). Africa mining vision: African minerals governance framework. Addis Ababa. © UN. ECA. https://hdl.handle.net/10855/24172


 International Labour Organisation. (2020). Report on Employment in Africa – Tackling the Youth Unemployment Challenge. Retrieved from https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---africa/---ro-abidjan/documents/publication/wcms_753300.pdf/


National Resource Governance Institute. (2015). Local Content: Strengthening the Local Economy and Workforce. Retrieved from https://resourcegovernance.org/sites/default/files/nrgi_Local-Content.pdf/ 


Aneasoronye M. (2020, Feb 17). Local Content Has Created Several Benefits for Indigenous Firms. Business Day. Retrieved from https://businessday.ng/insight-2/article/local-content-policy-has-created-several-benefits-for-indigenous-firms-innocent-i-akuvue/ 


Nnodim O. (2021, Oct 21). Nigeria’s Petroleum Imports Exceeded Exports by $43.56bn – OPEC. Retrieved from https://punchng.com/nigerias-petroleum-imports-exceeded-exports-by-43-56bn-opec/ 


 Igbohor (2021, April 7). AfCFTA: 100 Days since start of free trading, prospects seem bright. UN Africa Renewal. Retrieved https://www.un.org/africarenewal/magazine/april-2021/afcfta-100-days-start-free-trading-prospects-seem-bright/ 

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