Dr. Tuesday Gichuki, Africa Peace Service Corps talk about Youth Empowerment Strategies at the 2015 Global Peace Leadership Conference in Zanzibar, Tanzania.

1. Youth Engagement Initiatives
Africa Peace Service Corps
Youth Empowerment Strategies
East Africa Global Peace Leadership Conference Zanzibar, July 21-24, 2015
Presentation by:
Dr Tuesday Gichuki, PhD
Executive Director, Africa Peace Service Corps

2. Youth Empowerment Strategies
• Definition/Dimensions of youth
• Key Youth Issues
• Youth Unemployment
• Collective Impact Approach
• APSC Strategies, Achievements & Challenges
• Way Forward

3. Definition/Dimensions of youth
Gender
Dimensions
15-24 (UN)
15-35 (AU)
Agents of
Violence/
Peace
Youth with limited
education and employment
opportunities recruited by
parties to a conflict.
APSC has adopted
the AU Definition
There is a link
between masculinity
and violence; need
for non-militarized
masculinity

4. Youth is
Diverse
Cultural
Diversity
Employed
Youth
Education
Levels
Youth in
BusinessYouth in
School
Rural/
Urban
Divide
Youth
NEET

5. Key Youth Issues
UNEMPLOYMENT

6. Adults don’t think
youth ‘should’ or
‘can’ be involved in
decision-making
Risky
Aggressive
Immature
Young Women
face more
barriers
Both Youth and
Adults lack skills
Youth Exclusion
Gender
Equity
Build
Capacity

7. 357.7 Million
Youth NEET in
2010 Worldwide
347 Million in
Developing
Countries
44.7
Million in
Sub -
Saharan
Africa
Youth Unemployment

8. Africa Population
Under 35 Years
15 < 35 Years
One
Billion
65%
35%
11
Million
Annually Market

9. 80,000
applications
received from
Kenyans for
1,000 jobs in
Judiciary
41,452
interested in
clerical jobs
were university
graduates

10. Programming Challenges
Quality of
Data on
Youth issues
is poor
Distinguish
between
Formal &
Informal
sectors
Data should
include
number of jobs
as well as
Quality of jobs

11. cross-cutting
issue
requiring
Multi-
stakeholder
Approach
It is a
complex
problem that
has no clear
answers
No single
entity has
resources or
authority to
address the
issue on its
own

12. Collective Impact Approach
No single
entity can
tackle or
solve
complex
social
problems
Multiple
entities from
different
sectors
favour of a
common
agenda
Backbone
Organization
helps
coordinate
participating
organisations
to act in
concert

13. Collective Impact - Key Elements
Common Agenda
Common Progress Measures
Mutually Reinforcing Activities
Communication shows culture
of collaboration
Backbone Organization to
manage the Collaboration

14. Africa Peace Service Corps-The Genesis

15. 2010 2012 2013
GLOBAL PEACE
CONVENTION NAIROBI
AFRICA CONFERENCE ON
VOLUNTEER ACTION FOR
PEACE & DEVELOPMENT IN
NAIROBI
GLOBAL PEACE
LEADERSHIP
CONFERENCE, ABUJA
CALL FOR
FORMATION OF
PEACE CORPS
LAUNCH OF EAST
AFRICA PEACE
SERVICE CORPS
LAUNCH OF
AFRICA PEACE
SERVICE CORPS

16. 2012
AFRICA CONFERENCE
ON VOLUNTEER
ACTION FOR PEACE
& DEVELOPMENT
EAST AFRICA PEACE SERVICE CORPS
LAUNCH BY KENYA PRIME MINISTER
RT. HON. RAILA ODINGA
Participation by Youth,
UN Agencies, African
Union, RECs,
Government Agencies,
CSOs & Private Sector

17. 2013
GLOBAL PEACE
LEADERSHIP
CONFERENCE
ABUJA, NIGERIA
28 Countries
launched APSC
Dr. Manu Chandaria
CEO, Comcraft Group
Kenya
Sir James Mancham
Founding President
Seychelles
Dr. Kenneth David
Kaunda, Founding
President , Zambia
AFRICA LEADERSHIP MISSION
Youth from 20
Countries on
Skype

18. Africa
Peace
Service
Corps
Public/Private
partnership
Pan African
Youth
Network
Promoting
Volunteerism
Cross Border
Exchanges
Building
Employability
Skills
Brings together
Governments, UN
Agencies, Regional
Blocs, Private
Sector, CSOs and
Youth serving
organizations

19. Africa Peace Service Corps Structure
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
SECRETARIAT
YOUTH
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
IMPLEMENTING YOUTH ORGANIZATIONS
CENTRES OF
EXCELLENCE
YOUTH
EMPLOYABILITY
YOUTH
PARTICIPATION

20. Opportunities,
Capabilities &
Second Chances
(Supply)
Promoting an
enabling climate
for Job Creation
(Demand)
Volunteerism,
Entrepreneurship &
Community Service
Youth
Unemployment
Interventions
11 Million new
entrants to job
market annually
Low education
levels, lack of
skills and lack
of opportunities

21. TRAINING FOR
EMPLOYABILITY
CHARACTER &
CREATIVITY
BUSINESS
INCUBATION
SOFT SKILLS
DEVELOPMENT
MARKET
RESPONSIVENESS
EDUCATION
STANDARDS
MENTORSHIP

22. SUPPORTING YOUTH
ENTERPRENEURSHIP
NON FINANCIAL
TECHNOLOGY
FINANCIAL
Linkages to loans and grants
Linkages to Business Incubators
Access to Markets
Training & capacity Building
Linkage to Business Networks
Integrated Support
Extend ICT infrastructure
Assess market opportunities

23. PARTICIPATION &
CIVIC ENGAGEMENT
POLITICAL
PROCESSES
SOCIAL ISSUES &
REGIONAL
INTEGRATION
VOLUNTEERISM
& COMMUNITY
SERVICE
GENDER, HIV/AIDS,
TEENAGE
PREGNANCY

24. Regional
Centres of
Excellence
Youth
Status
Legal
Frameworks
Youth
Networks
Labour
Markets
Knowledge
Sharing
Private
Sector
Value
Chains

25. APSC Model of Youth Engagement

26. Current Youth Engagement Model
Youth
Groups
Private
Sector
Civil
Society
Faith Based
Organizations
Multi-lateral
Agencies
Government
Agencies
Regional
Blocs

27. APSC Model- Collective Impact Approach
Youth
Groups
Private
Sector
CSOs
FBOs
UN & Multi-
Lateral
Agencies
Government
Agencies
Regional
Blocs
Round
Table
Out of
School
Youth
In-School
Youth
Young
Business
Owners

28. Service Tracks
Secretariat
Education Health Environment
Entrepreneur
ship
Peace
Support Services

29. Environmental Track
Environmental
Roundtable
Reforestation
Waste
Management
1 Million Trees
Planted yearly
School Tree
Nurseries
Plastic
Waste
Organic
Waste
Poles, Frames,
Tiles …
Briquettes,
Manure….

30. Education Track
Education
Roundtable
Character &
Creativity
Teacher Volunteers/
Exchange
LEAP Hubs
Community
Level
National
Level

31. Entrepreneurship Track
Funding
Support
Entrepreneurship
Roundtable
Training &
capacity Building
Supporting/
Mentoring
Skills
Development
Financial
Management
Business
Owners
Employees
Value Chains/
Market Links
Internships/
Jobs portal
Links to
Finance/
Markets

32. Health Track
Health
Roundtable
Basic Hygiene Advocacy
Diarrheal
Diseases
Malaria
Teenage
Pregnancies
HIV/AIDS

33. Positive Peace Track
Positive Peace
Roundtable
Regional Exchange
Programs
Community Peace
Initiatives
Skilled
Volunteers
Emergency
Volunteers
Conflict
Resolution
Community
Development

34. Some Achievements

35. Kariobangi Community Cooker
An incinerator which burns all forms of waste
Energy is harnessed for useful purposes; (cooking, steam
generation, electricity etc)

36. The Collective Impact approach
Multiple actors working
on a common agenda
shared measurement &
alignment of effort
County Government,
GPF, APSC and 10
Corporate Foundations
11 Existing Youth
Groups working in
Waste Management on
voluntary basis
Creation of a Business
Entity get support from
Private Sector

37. MOU signed for Implementation of COMESA
Youth Program -2013

38. Abuja Declaration 2013
Set up
Mandela
Forest in all
African
countries
First
Mandela
Forest in
Kenya by
2016
50,000
trees to
be planted
through
PPP

39. Honouring
President
Nelson
Mandela
16 ha of degraded forest
land in Nairobi allocated
Mandela Day 2014
50,000
trees
through
PPP
Government financial
contribution-$ 180,000
10 Private Sector Foundations
committed to give $ 820,000
670 trees planted in Nairobi
Youth volunteers for planting
and maintenance
Similar activities in Zambia
and South Africa
Tree Nursery as a business in
Secondary schools launched

40. Nairobi River Peace Initiative
Aimed to bring together Nairobi Youth after
2008 Post Election Violence in Kenya
Over 2,000 youth involved

41. Nairobi River Before Nairobi River After

42. Community Empowerment in Health
In Uganda, Omni
Med works in
malaria and
diarrheal illness
prevention

43. Nigerian Inter-Faith Action Association Addresses
basic hygiene, malaria and HIV AIDS
Bishop Sunday OnuohaSa’adu Abubakar
Sultan of Sokoto
Archbishop John
Onaiyekan of Abuja

44. Limited Resources to support Programs
Few African countries have a Youth Policy
Few African countries have a Volunteer Policy
Communication difficult and expensive
No innovative job creation interventions
Duplication of effort by many players
Challenges

45. Way Forward
Corporate and
Business Leaders
need to support
youth initiatives in
entrepreneurship,
volunteerism and
service in a
structured manner
to advance regional
integration and
peace
There is need for
regional partnership
linkages between
East Africa and
Middle East nations
for strategic
cooperation in
peace-building,
combating
extremism, and trade
development
Young leaders
need to be
empowered to
contribute to
regional
integration and
progress toward
SDGs through
volunteerism,
service and youth
entrepreneurship