Africa Development Impact Forum (Event 2, ADIF 2026)

level, at a regional level, and at a global level on this. It's not just, you know, the job of the governments. It's not just the jobs of international institutions. It's your future. You need to own it. You need to advance it. And you need to support progress toward it. And that comes through, you know, all the, you know, voices, Also, your role in linking with the communities, African communities and African public, to understand the importance of this agenda, to make it really beyond kind of like, you know, the ivory tower discussions. It's the discussions of your future, so it needs to be discussed at public forums. Understood and then advocated in different forums, also connecting with youth in other regions that, you know, influence these decisions, being— be it, you know, with youth outside the continent, and understanding and explaining how this affects and what is required is key because at the end We need accountability on this agenda globally, accountability at a national level, at a regional level, but also globally. So your voice is critical. We would like you to be not just observers, but we'd like you to be part of the force advancing this. So having said that, There are, you know, a number of questions that have been asked. Let me just maybe put them in, you know, a few buckets. One of them is the issue of the role of the continent and how it has been changing. I believe we have made, you know, significant progress from moving to be just observers' role taker to actually coming to be part of the rulemaking. And this is really illustrated actually by the fact that the African Union now have a seat in the G20. So before, we used to just, you know, be a rule taker. Now we have a voice at the table to actually shape what comes out. We need to utilize this. We need to engage and to support as all of us are, and ECA is a strategic partner of the African Union in their participation for the G20, we need to stand behind that to advance and push for the type of reforms that Africa needs. We have also other progress that have been made that is quite substantial. We have things that is now institutionalized. So for example, in the G20 processes, Now, under the leadership of South Africa, under their G20 presidency, there was institutionalizing of the G20 Africa Engagement Framework, which means that there is a way by which this will remain on the agenda to monitor commitments that are made and progress also that is made by the continent, so it's a way to keep accountability of both sides that did not exist before. And it's very important because with all what many of you have mentioned, the global changes, the fragmentation, a lot of things are changing. So having something that provides some stability and a mechanism that is institutionalized give us continuity, which is very important. And it's important to highlight that this was really done under the leadership of an African country, South Africa, heading G20 presidency. Same thing we've seen. We've seen the African leadership, for example, with the UN International Tax Cooperation. It was thanks to the African negotiators that led this process and now that is working. So Africa has really— I see Africa as taking the lead rather than know, being a bystander. And that's what we would like you at your level to do the same, similar to what has been done institutionally by, you know, within these frameworks, to take the lead, you know, for this agenda to advance globally as well and continentally. There was also issues that were raised on issues of risk premium and what it means. Of course, there is a lot of work that has been done that shows that Africa bears an unfair risk premium relative to countries that have similar fundamentals. It's a perception issue, which means that there are 2 elements. One is by the rating agencies and how consistent the ratings are, but also by us, meaning that we need to make sure that the data is available so that we are judged based objectively and not, you know, by subjective assessments. So that part means accountability, means data being released, which as part of the, you know, the African public, you have a role in calling for accountability for this data to be that are released so that assessment can be challenged. We have been doing a lot of work supporting the first, you know, the African rating agencies to, you know, become a reality. This is a positive step, but we have to also, you know, manage expectations that this helps in having a baseline, but this is not a silver bullet point. We need to still work with existing and other rating agencies to make sure that it's done better, that we have, you know, data, reliable data that we can use to challenge assessments, and that we also are communicating better about, you know, the stories, the reforms, the progress that African countries are making. I think there was also questions regarding Climate and resilience. ECA has been doing also a lot of work on that area, being through studies, trying to change narratives. But evidence shows that actually investing in resilience can save— $1 invested in resilience can save $10 to $14 in future losses. So we need to think of resilience as an investment. We need to also, you know, make sure that the type, the quantity, and the quality of climate finance that's flowing is appropriate. You know, it needs to be more toward adaptation because this is what our country is going through. And what we have seen is that most of the finance does not go to that. So we need to reform that. We need to reform also the cost of that financing, because, you know, the continent contributes very little, less than 4% of global emissions, yet it bears the brunt of the damages. So these are some of the things that we have, we have to pursue. And ECA, for example, has been supporting, and particularly for Uganda, to change the narrative of investment and resilience to showcase how investment and resilience can change future— reduce risk, but also increase growth potential. So we have been working on a number of areas, including that. We've been supporting African negotiators, and I think the African youth, part of what they can help with is to advance advocate for African common positions across the board, whether global financial architecture, whether climate issues, and really be the face and voice of it at different levels. There were also the issue of how can we turn the common positions into bargaining powers. We can do that through actually advancing it in, you know, and using opportunities. So, for example, using whether it's G20, G7, the Finance for Development, which actually the resolution for it, the declaration included the African position, integrated it into it.

Yes.

using these various processes to advance and then to find champions— countries, you know, whether G7, G20— that can actually support this and champion along with our countries so that we can get results. I think I will defer the rest of the difficult questions to the U.S. Thank you very much for your engagement and—

Thank you very much.

engagement and enthusiasm, and we look forward to continuing the conversation. Yes.

Thank you very much. We have come to the end of this specific session. Yes, thank you very much, really. Really, when I heard the discussions here, I remembered when I was the Minister of Finance, And we were always talking among ourselves as ministers and other high-level people, but one day we started testing what we are doing in terms of budget with the civil society, and we had a session for the youth. Oh my God. After that session, we realized we were doing things wrong because there is information that was out there that the young people have that we didn't have, and yet we are the ones determining their future. And I think from what they are discussing here, it really gives us an impression that we need to empower the youth, because at the end of the day, when we travel, we go and meet governments. That means ministers, senior officials. From there, we go and meet in our conference rooms. They are the same people that we are talking to. But without the youth, whose future is at stake, If we don't empower you, it's not just involving you. Involving you is not enough, but also we need to empower you on all the issues that we've been talking about here, whether it is the risks that we are talking about. Starting from the state, we go and meet with them and they say, you need to be credit— you need to have a good credit rating. We need to empower you. There is a perception of risk which is bringing a high cost. in shaping the decisions that we are talking about? When we sit in New York or in Washington, are you part of it? Because just to give you an example, when we— after COVID, when the IMF triggered the resources that are supposed to support the world of $650 billion, Africa as a whole continent, they only got $34 They did not make a mistake. It's because our shareholding is just equivalent to one country, Germany. And if you want to change that element of the shareholding alone, your voice becomes very important. But also the way we work from the country level to the continental level in terms of domestic resource mobilization, which you have never done— we are the lowest ever, you know. at 16%, and we need to go way up, but because we are looking for money from outside, we are not doing much at home. You have a big influence. In terms of climate, you are the one who has a big influence, but you need our support to tell you what are the financial products that can help the young people. If you are talking about blue bonds, green bonds, Sustainability-linked bonds? Are you aware of that? How do they work? How do you access them? How does it help which area? And there are many other areas. I don't want to take much of your time, but what I think now from the questions they have asked, you have to participate in all areas. Our job is to empower you. Our job is to provide you with all the information, and you have to find a mechanism under which to empower you because you have the ideas.

Thank you.

You are the ones who are going to do the business. You are the ones who are going to be in government. You are the ones who are going to be in different organizations. But we need to empower you. And to empower you, first and foremost, is to give you information. I heard someone asking about NAFAD, the New African Financial Architecture for Development, that is led by the African Development Bank. The reason is that the money from outside was actually now becoming difficult. The aid is declining significantly; it's no longer there. The concessional resources, which is very cheap, is no longer— is declining significantly, given our needs of our own economies. And then the debt levels are very high, and the structuring of it, the people who used to help are also getting difficulties, and we need to look at it differently. But on the other hand, Africa has been growing. The pensions have been growing. The sovereign wealth funds have been growing and other resources have been growing, but where are they invested? Outside. When I was the Governor of the Central Bank, I told my colleagues I used to keep my reserves in Citibank, also in the RAM program of the World Bank mainly. That was 70%. In the country, I was only keeping less than 10%. Because you had to keep it in a AAA rating. Okay, African Development Bank is a AAA rating. Why can't we bring all these resources that we have in all our countries back to Africa through a AAA rating like ADB and then use it to lend ourselves so that this time the risk is minimized because it is a AAA rating and you can leverage more resources from the private sector? And that's why the NAFAD is trying to do— to see how do we actually use our own resources now to this time leverage more of that. You can leverage 3 times, 4 times of the private sector resources, and then the money would be available and the price would be cheaper, because this time it's our bank. And so there are so many possibilities, but what I see here is that our role as ECA is how do we find a mechanism working with you to provide you as much information and to get you involved at all levels. When you are talking about Africa, when you are talking in New York, when you are talking in Washington, when you are talking at other capitals, to make sure that you have not only a voice but you are influencing. You give ideas, but you give ideas when you are well informed. And we are ready, really, to assist you in this process, whether we are talking about job creation, whether we are talking about technology, climate, finance, and so many other areas. I think we need to get you involved and we need to get you— to give you all the information that is necessary. But I thank the moderator for the job well done. I thank the young people here. I've been told that some of them have been— have a background with ECA, and I think we need to keep all of you. Even those that have not been here, from today you are baptized.

Yes.

You are now part of the ECA. I think together we can really make a big difference to our continent. Thank you very much.

Thank you, ladies and gentlemen.

Thank you, Dr. Executive Secretary. Dear participants, This brings us to the end of this extremely enriching session. There are several key messages. First of all, we need to have architecture for a more transparent, equitable debt system that is adapted to African realities. Secondly, we must reduce the cost of capital. Thirdly, there's stimulus for economic transformation on our continent, and we have to have climate financing that improves on resilience. We have to combat illicit financial flows, which prevents Africa from getting the resources that are essential for Africa's development. Finally, there's a central role that youth play as actors of development, making proposals for global reform. The various contributions that we have heard today show that African youth do not just wish to be consulted. They want to actively contribute to defining solutions. Thank you. I would also like to warmly thank all the speakers, everybody who has participated, and all our partners present. Here. Thank you. ECA. Thank you, everybody.

A big thank you to the Executive Secretary and the Deputy Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa. Our excellent moderator, Ms. Derome, and all our youth for their insightful interventions. There's much more to be said, and I encourage you to please reach out and engage with the leadership and newly baptized ECA staff during the breaks. Please give them another round of applause. There will be a group photo of the panel, and the protocol staff will accompany you to where that will be taken. Distinguished guests, we now have a 30-minute break for 2 purposes. First, we invite you to visit the Knowledge Fair. It is a fair which showcases how bold ideas are translated into real measurable impact through the collective efforts of diverse stakeholders, from leading think tanks to the United Nations development system to dynamic youth enterprises. Both leaders are kindly requested to proceed to their respective stands. This will be followed by a health and coffee break. Both the knowledge fair and the coffee break are located on the floor below. Ushers will be available to guide you to the place. We will reconvene promptly in 30 minutes at 11:35 AM, keeping to our Japanese standard of punctuality. We will see you then. Thank you so much.

Africa has no shortage of research, no shortage of policies, no shortage of promises, but too often impact stays out of reach, and this is the implementation gap. Where evidence is delayed, and ideas fade before they are actioned and scaled up.

It's time to build a bridge, a bridge from policy to practice, from dialogue to delivery.

Introducing the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026.

Not just another forum, a fundamental break from business as usual. For months, ECA and partners have been building momentum through the PreForum Stocktake Webinar Series, convening experts on green minerals, AI and jobs, youth entrepreneurship and regional value chains under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

These sessions are shaping real solutions for youth employment across Africa.

One mission across 3 stages, where ideas compete before the forum, solutions will be discussed during the forum, and impact is tracked for scale-up. At the Africa Development Impact Forum, the Knowledge Fair tells the story of the journey from ideas to action and to impact. Africa needs 15 million jobs every year, not pilots, not papers, proven and scalable solutions.

During the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026, policymakers, the private sector, youth, and researchers gather to discuss durable solutions.

We invite you all to the Knowledge Fair exhibition area, where you will immerse yourself into a journey of success stories and scalable initiatives that are building a new Africa, the bridge to a brighter future.

Africa has no shortage of research, no shortage of policies, no shortage of promises. But too often, impact stays out of reach, and this is the implementation gap, where evidence is delayed and ideas fade before they are actioned and scaled up.

It's time to build a bridge—

a bridge from policy to practice, from dialogue to delivery.

Introducing the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026.

Not just another forum— a fundamental break from business as usual. For months, ECA and partners have been building momentum through the pre-forum stocktake, webinar series, convening experts on green minerals, AI and jobs, youth entrepreneurship and regional value chains under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

These sessions are shaping real solutions for youth employment across Africa.

One mission across 3 stages, where ideas compete before the forum, solutions will be discussed during the forum, and impact is tracked for scale-up. At the Africa Development Impact Forum, the knowledge fair tells the story of the journey from ideas to action and to impact.

Africa needs 15 million jobs every year—

not pilots, not papers, proven and scalable solutions.

During the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026, policymakers, the private sector, youth, and researchers gather to discuss durable solutions.

We invite you all to the Knowledge Fair exhibition area, where you will immerse yourself into a journey of success stories and scalable initiatives that are building a new Africa, the bridge to a brighter future.

Africa has no shortage of research, no shortage of policies, no shortage of promises. But too often, impact stays out of reach, and this is the implementation gap, where evidence is delayed and ideas fade before they are actioned and scaled up.

It's time to build a bridge—

a bridge from policy to practice, from dialogue to delivery.

Introducing the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026.

Not just another forum— a fundamental break from business as usual. For months, ECA and partners have been building momentum through the pre-forum Stocktake webinar series, convening experts on green minerals, AI and jobs youth entrepreneurship and regional value chains under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

These sessions are shaping real solutions for youth employment across Africa.

One mission across 3 stages, where ideas compete before the forum, solutions will be discussed during the forum, and impact is tracked for scale-up. At the Africa Development Impact Forum, the knowledge fair tells the story of the journey from ideas to action and to impact. Africa needs 15 million jobs every year, not pilots, not papers, proven and scalable solutions.

During the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026, policymakers, the private sector, youth, and researchers gather to discuss durable solutions.

We invite you all to the Knowledge Fair exhibition area, where you will immerse yourself into a journey of success stories and scalable initiatives that are building a new Africa, the bridge to a brighter future. Africa has no shortage of resources, No shortage of policies, no shortage of promises.

But too often, impact stays out of reach, and this is the implementation gap. Where evidence is delayed, and ideas fade before they are actioned and scaled up.

It's time to build a bridge, a bridge from policy to practice, from dialogue to delivery.

Introducing the Africa Development Impact Forum, 2026.

Not just another forum, a fundamental break from business as usual. For months, ECA and partners have been building momentum through the pre-forum Stocktake webinar series, convening experts on green minerals, AI and jobs, youth entrepreneurship and regional value chains under the African Continental Free Trade Area. These sessions are shaping real solutions for youth employment across Africa. One mission across 3 stages, where ideas compete before the forum, solutions will be discussed during the forum, and impact is tracked for scale-up. At the Africa Development Impact Forum, the Knowledge Fair tells the story of the journey, from ideas to action, and to impact. Africa needs 15 million jobs every year, not pilots, not papers, proven and scalable solutions.

During the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026, policymakers, the private sector, youth, and researchers gather to discuss durable solutions.

We invite you all to the Knowledge Fair exhibition area, where you will immerse yourself into a journey of success stories and scalable initiatives that are building a new Africa, the bridge to a brighter future.

Africa has no shortage of research, no shortage of policies, no shortage of promises. But too often, impact stays out of reach, and this is the implementation gap— where evidence is delayed, and ideas fade before they are actioned and scaled up.

It's time to build a bridge, a bridge from policy to practice, from dialogue to delivery.

Introducing the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026.

Not just another forum, a fundamental breakthrough. From business as usual. For months, ECA and partners have been building momentum through the PreForum StockTech webinar series, convening experts on green minerals, AI and jobs, youth entrepreneurship and regional value chains under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

These sessions are shaping real solutions for youth employment across Africa.

One mission across 3 stages, where ideas compete before the forum, solutions will be discussed during the forum, and impact is tracked for scale-up. At the Africa Development Impact Forum, the Knowledge Fair tells the story of the journey, from ideas to action, and to impact.

Million jobs every year—

not pilots, not papers, proven and scalable solutions.

During the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026, policymakers, the private sector, youth, and researchers gather to discuss durable solutions.

We invite you all to the Knowledge Fair exhibition area, where you will immerse yourself into a journey of success stories and scalable initiatives that are building a new Africa, the bridge to a brighter future.

Africa has no shortage of research, no shortage of policies, no shortage of promises. But too often, impact stays out of reach.

Reach, and this is the implementation gap.

Where evidence is delayed, and ideas fade before they are actioned and scaled up.

It's time to build a bridge, a bridge from policy to practice, from dialogue to delivery.

Introducing the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026.

Not just another forum, a fundamental break from business as usual. For months, ECA and partners have been building momentum through the pre-forum Stocktake Webinar Series, convening experts on green minerals, AI and jobs, youth entrepreneurship and regional value chains under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

These sessions are shaping real solutions for youth employment across Africa.

One mission across 3 stages: where ideas compete before the forum, solutions will be discussed during the forum, and impact is tracked for scale-up. At the Africa Development Impact Forum, the Knowledge Fair tells the story of the journey from ideas to action and to impact. Africa needs 15 million jobs every year, not pilots, not papers, proven and scalable solutions.

During the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026, policymakers, the private sector, youth, and researchers gather to discuss durable solutions.

We invite you all to the Knowledge Fair exhibition area, where you will immerse yourself into a journey of success stories and scalable initiatives that are building a new Africa, the bridge to a brighter future.

Africa has no shortage of research, no shortage of policies, no shortage of promises. But too often, impact stays out of reach, and this is the implementation gap, where evidence is delayed and ideas fade before they are actioned and scaled up.

It's time to build a bridge.

A bridge from policy to practice, from dialogue to delivery.

Introducing the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026.

Not just another forum, a fundamental break from business as usual. For months, ECA and partners have been building momentum through the pre-forum Stocktake webinar series, convening experts on green minerals, AI and jobs, youth entrepreneurship and regional value chains under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

These sessions are shaping real solutions for youth employment across Africa.

One mission across 3 stages, where ideas compete before the forum, solutions will be discussed during the forum, and impact is tracked for scale-up. At the Africa Development Impact Forum, the Knowledge Fair tells the story of the journey from ideas to action, and to impact.

Africa needs 15 million jobs every year—

not pilots, not papers— proven and scalable solutions.

During the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026, policymakers, the private sector, youth, and researchers gather to discuss durable solutions.

We invite you all to the Knowledge Fair exhibition area, where you will immerse yourself into a journey of success stories and scalable initiatives that are building a new Africa, the bridge to a brighter future.

Africa has no shortage of resources.

As such, no shortage of policies, no shortage of promises.

But too often, impact stays out of reach, and this is the implementation gap. Where evidence is delayed, and ideas fade before they are actioned and scaled up.

It's time to build a bridge, a bridge from policy to practice, from dialogue to delivery.

Introducing the Africa Development Impact Forum, 2026.

Not just another forum, a fundamental break from business as usual. For months, ECA and partners have been building momentum through the pre-forum StockTech webinar series, convening experts on green minerals, AI and jobs, youth entrepreneurship and regional value chains under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

These sessions are shaping real solutions for youth employment across Africa.

One mission across 3 stages, where ideas compete before the forum, solutions will be discussed during the forum, and impact is tracked for scale-up. At the Africa Development Impact Forum, the Knowledge Fair tells the story of the journey, from ideas to action, and to impact. Africa needs 15 million jobs every year, not pilots, not papers, proven and scalable solutions.

During the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026, policymakers, the private sector, youth, and researchers gather to discuss durable solutions.

We invite you all to the Knowledge Fair exhibition area, where you will immerse yourself into a journey of success stories and scalable initiatives that are building a new Africa, the bridge to a brighter future.

Africa has no shortage of research, no shortage of policies, no shortage of promises. But too often, impact stays out of reach, and this is the implementation gap— where evidence is delayed, and ideas fade before they are actioned and scaled up.

It's time to build a bridge, a bridge from policy to practice, from dialogue to delivery.

Introducing the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026.

Not just another forum, a fundamental break from business as usual. For months, ECA and partners have been building momentum through the pre-forum Stocktake webinar series, convening experts on green minerals, AI and jobs, youth entrepreneurship and regional value chains under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

These sessions are shaping real solutions for youth employment across Africa.

One mission across 3 stages, where ideas compete before the forum, solutions will be discussed during the forum, and impact is tracked for scale-up. At the Africa Development Impact Forum, the Knowledge Fair tells the story of the journey, from ideas to action, and to impact. Africa needs 15 million jobs every year, not pilots, not papers, proven and scalable solutions.

During the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026, policymakers, the private sector, youth, and researchers gather to discuss durable solutions.

We invite you all to the Knowledge Fair exhibition area, where you will immerse yourself into a journey of success stories and scalable initiatives that are building a new Africa, the bridge to a brighter future.

Africa has no shortage of research, no shortage of policies, no shortage of promises. But Too often, impact stays out of reach, and this is the implementation gap— where evidence is delayed, and ideas fade before they are actioned and scaled up.

It's time to build a bridge, a bridge from policy to practice, from dialogue to delivery.

Introducing the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026.

Not just another forum, a fundamental break from business-as-usual. As usual. For months, ECA and partners have been building momentum through the Pre-Forum Stocktake Webinar Series, convening experts on green minerals, AI and jobs, youth entrepreneurship and regional value chains under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

These sessions are shaping real solutions for youth employment across Africa.

Competition across 3 stages, where ideas compete before the forum, solutions will be discussed during the forum, and impact is tracked for scale-up. At the Africa Development Impact Forum, the Knowledge Fair tells the story of the journey, from ideas to action, and to impact.

Africa needs 15 million jobs every year, Not pilots, not papers—

proven and scalable solutions.

During the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026, policymakers, the private sector, youth, and researchers gather to discuss durable solutions.

We invite you all to the Knowledge Fair Exhibition Area, where you will immerse yourself into a journey of success stories and scalable initiatives that are building a new Africa, the bridge to a brighter future.

Whether you're on the panel, whether you're in the audience, you're asking a question, it's important to make yourself seen and heard as young people. Things like this cannot happen without your presence.

I'm a youth who is hungry to change Africa.

So there's been a great mention throughout the whole conference of young people being a growing population and how they're going to be so many, and it's kind of giving undertones of them being a burden, right? And also, a lot of times when they are mentioned, they are beneficiaries.

We are not just beneficiaries, we are active partners who are involved in the iterative

Places like this are very good for the youths because whatever decision is being made as of now, it gets to affect us. So I urge most of the youths out there to take part because whatever decision is made or policy is made is affecting us. So we need to be able to give out our voices.

The youth can not only be just here to be heard, but also how we We can actually collaborate with the youth to solve, like, many, many, many issues, but not only solve issues, but actually co-working with them on the ground.

You are running a race and you're running as fast as you can and as strong as you can, but the problem is you're running in the wrong direction because right at the start point it's a relay. You did not ask your teammates who's at the start point, where they're gonna stop, and where you're gonna pass them the baton. And you know who this teammate is? It's the young person. This is a relay. We are in this together.

With the rate of growth and the intellectual capacity of the youth, they might be seeing something that the elders are not seeing. Youth are very energetic and they have— they're full of potential. If they lead some of the initiatives with their energy, I'm sure there will be some positive changes.

If the priorities that are decided on in this conference, in this forum, do not take into consideration the experiences of young women, it will be very difficult to achieve some of the goals.

For a continent whose population is 70% are youth, and indeed of which 16% or more of those are youth with disabilities, it's imperative that youth are here, they are participating, and their voice and their agency is well represented.

Youth need to be consulted in decision-making. We need action. We don't want things that to be said. We need action because what Africa wants is action.

We need to trust the youth today. We need actually We need to give them the space. We need to see the change. We need to see what actually has been discussed here implemented.

You cannot influence what you don't understand. Incredible work is being done throughout the continent. Let's do this together. Whether you're on the panel, whether you're in the audience, you're asking a question, it's important to make yourself seen and heard as young people. Things like this cannot happen without your presence.

I'm a youth who is angry to change Africa.

So there's been a great mention throughout the whole conference of young people being a growing population and how they're going to There have been so many, and it's kind of giving undertones of them being a burden, right? And also, a lot of times when they are mentioned, they are beneficiaries. We are not just beneficiaries, we are active partners who are involved in the iterative process step by step.

Places like this are very good for the youths because whatever decision is being made as of now, it gets to affect us. So I urge more most of the youths out there to take part because whatever decision is made or policy is made is affecting us. So we need to be able to give out our voices.

The youth can not only be just here to be heard, but also how we can actually collaborate with the youth to solve like many, many, many issues.

But not only solve issues, but actually co-working

You are running a race and you're running as fast as you can and as strong as you can, but the problem is you're running in the wrong direction because right at the start point it's a relay. You did not ask your teammate who's at the start point where they're gonna stop and where you're gonna pass them the baton. And you know who this teammate is? It's the young person. This is a relay. We are in this together.

With the rate of growth and the intellectual capacity of the youth, they might be seeing something that the elders are not seeing. Youth are very energetic and they have— they're full of potential. If they tend— they lead some of the initiatives with their energy, I'm sure there will be some positive changes.

If the priorities that are If the goals that we decided on in this conference, in this forum, do not take into consideration the experiences of young women, it will be very difficult to achieve some of the goals.

For a continent whose population is 70% are youth, and indeed of which 16% or more of those are youth with disabilities, it's imperative that youth, youth are here, they are participating, and their voice and their agency is well represented.

Youth need to be consulted in decision-making. We need action. We don't want things that to be said. We need action because what Africa wants is action.

We need to trust the youth today. We need actually to give them the space. We need to see the change. We need to see what actually has been discussed here implemented.

You cannot influence what you don't understand.

understand.

Incredible work is being done throughout the continent. Let's do this together. Whether you're on the panel, whether you're in the audience, you're asking a question, it's important to make yourself seen and heard as young people. Things like this cannot happen without your presence.

I'm a youth who is angry to change Africa.

So there's a lot of great mention throughout the whole conference of young people being a growing population and how they're gonna be so many, and it's kind of giving undertones of them being a burden, right? And also, a lot of times when they are mentioned, they are beneficiaries. We are not just beneficiaries, We are active partners who are involved in the iterative process step by step.

Places like this are very good for the youths because whatever decision is being made as of now, it gets to affect us. So I urge most of the youths out there to take part because whatever decision is made or policy is made is affecting us. So we need to be able to give out our voices.

The youth can not only be just here to be heard, but also how we can actually collaborate with the youth to solve, like, many, many, many issues. But not only solve issues, but actually co-working with them on the ground.

You are running a race and you're running as fast as you can and as strong as you can, but the problem is you're running in the wrong direction because right at the start It's a relay. You do not ask your teammate who's at the start point where they're gonna stop and where you're gonna pass them the baton. And you know who this teammate is? It's the young person. This is a relay. We are in this together.

With the rate of growth and the intellectual capacity of the youth, they might be seeing something that the elders are not seeing. Youth are very energetic. And they are full of potential. If they lead some of the initiatives with their energy, I'm sure there will be some positive changes.

If the priorities that are decided on in this conference, in this forum, do not take into consideration the experiences of young women, it will be very difficult to achieve some of the goals.

For a continent whose population is As 70% are youth, and indeed of which 16% or more of those are youth with disabilities, it's imperative that youth, youth are here, they are participating, and their voice and their agency is well represented.

Youth need to be consulted in decision-making. We need action. We don't want things that to be said. We need action because what Africa wants is action.

We need to trust the youth today. We need actually to give them the space. We need to see the change. We need to see what actually has been discussed here implemented.

You cannot influence what you don't understand. Incredible work is being done throughout the continent. Let's do this together. Whether you're on the panel, whether you're in the audience, you're asking a question, it's important to make yourself seen and heard as young people. Things like this cannot happen without your presence.

I'm a youth who is angry to change Africa.

So there's been a great mention throughout the whole conference of young people being a growing population and how they're going to be so many, and it's kind of giving undertones of them being a burden, right? And also, a lot of times when they're mentioned, they are beneficiaries. We are not just beneficiaries, we are active partners who are involved in the iterative process step by step.

Places like this are very good for the youths because whatever decision is being made as a now it gets to affect us. So I urge most of the youths out there to take part because whatever decision is made or policy is made is affecting us. So we need to be able to give out our voices.

The youth can not only be just here to be heard, but also how we can actually collaborate with the youth to solve like many, many, many issues.

But not only You are running a race and you're running as fast as you can and as strong as you can, but the problem is you're running in the wrong direction because right at the start point it's a relay. You do not ask your teammate who's at the start point where they're gonna stop and where you're gonna pass them the baton. And you know who this teammate is? It's the young person. It's the young person. This is a relay. We are in this together.

With the rate of growth and the intellectual capacity of the youth, they might be seeing something that the elders are not seeing. Youth are very energetic and they are full of potential. If they lead some of the initiatives with their energy, I'm sure there will be some positive change.

If the priorities that are decided on in this conference, in this forum, do not take into consideration the experiences of young women, it will be very difficult to achieve some of the goals.

For a continent whose population is 70% are youth, and indeed of which 16% or more of those are youth with disabilities, it's imperative that youth Youth are here, they are participating, and their voice and their agency is well represented.

Youth need to be consulted in decision-making. We need action. We don't want things that to be said. We need action because what Africa wants is action.

We need to trust the youth today. We need actually to give them the space. We need to see the change. We need to see what actually has been discussed here implemented.

You cannot influence what you don't understand. Incredible work is being done throughout the continent. Let's do this together. Whether you're on the panel whether you're in the audience, you're asking a question, it's important to make yourself seen and heard as young people. Things like this cannot happen without your presence.

I'm a youth who is angry to change Africa.

So there's been a great mention throughout the whole conference of young people being a growing population and how they're going to be so many, and it's kind of giving undertones of them being a burden, right? And also A lot of times when they are mentioned, they are beneficiaries. We are not just beneficiaries, we are active partners who are involved in the iterative process step by step.

Places like this are very good for the youths because whatever decision is being made as of now, it gets to affect us. So I urge most of the youths out there to take part because whatever decision is made or policy is made is affecting us. So we need to To be able to give out our voices.

The youth can not only be just here to be heard, but also how we can actually collaborate with the youth to solve, like, many, many, many issues. But not only solve issues, but actually co-working with them on the ground.

You are running a race and you're running as fast as you can and as strong as you can. But the problem is you're running in the wrong direction because right at the start point, it's a relay. You did not ask your teammate who's at the start point where they're gonna stop and where you're gonna pass them the baton. And you know who this teammate is? It's the young person. This is a relay. We are in this together.

With the rate of growth and the intellectual capacity of the youth, they might be seeing something that the elders are not seeing. Youth are very energetic and they are full of potential. If they lead some of the initiatives with their energy, I'm sure there will be some positive changes.

If the priorities that are decided on in this conference, in this forum, do not take into consideration the experiences of young women, For a continent whose population is 70% are youth, and indeed of which 16% or more of those are youth with disabilities, it's imperative that youth, youth are here, they are participating, and their voice and their agency is well represented.

Youth need to be consulted in decision-making. We need access to information. Action. We don't want things that to be said. We need action because what Africa wants is action.

We need to trust the youth today. We need actually to give them the space. We need to see the change. We need to see what actually has been discussed here implemented.

You cannot influence what you don't understand. Incredible work is being done throughout the continent. Let's do this together. Whether you're on the panel, whether you're in the audience, you're asking a question, it's important to make yourself seen and heard as young people. Things like this cannot happen without your presence.

I'm a youth who is angry to So there's been a great mention throughout the whole conference of young people being a growing population and how they're going to be so many, and it's kind of giving undertones of them being a burden, right? And also, a lot of times when they're mentioned, they are beneficiaries. We are not just beneficiaries, we are active partners who are involved in the iterative process step by step.

Places like this are very good for the youths because whatever decision is being made as of now, it gets to affect us. So I urge most of the youths out there to take part because whatever decision is made or policy is made is affecting us. So we need to be able to give out our voices.

The youth can not only be just here to be heard, but also how we can actually collaborate We collaborate with the youth to solve, like, many, many, many issues, but not only solve issues, but actually co-working with them on the ground.

You are running a race and you're running as fast as you can and as strong as you can, but the problem is you're running in the wrong direction because right at the start point it's a relay. You did not ask your teammate who's at the start point where Where they're gonna stop and where you're gonna pass them the baton. And you know who this teammate is? It's the young person. This is a relay. We are in this together.

With the rate of growth and the intellectual capacity of the youth, they might be seeing something that the elders are not seeing. Youth are very energetic and they have— they're full of potential if they turn When they lead some of the initiatives with their energy, I'm sure there will be some positive changes.

If the priorities that are decided on in this conference, in this forum, do not take into consideration the experiences of young women, it will be very difficult to achieve some of the goals.

For a continent whose population is 70% are youth, and indeed of which 16% or more of those are With youth with disabilities, it's imperative that youth are here, they are participating, and their voice and their agency is well represented.

Youth need to be consulted in decision-making. We need action. We don't want things that to be said. We need action because what Africa wants is action.

We need to trust the youth today. We need actually to give them the space. We need to see the change. We need to see what actually has been discussed here implemented.

You cannot influence what you don't understand. Incredible work is being done throughout the continent. Let's do this together. Whether you're on the panel, whether you're in the audience, you're asking a question, it's important to make yourself seen and heard as young people.

Africa has no shortage of research, no shortage of policies, no shortage of promises. But too often, impact stays out of reach, and this is the implementation gap. Where evidence is delayed, and ideas fade before they are actioned and scaled up.

It's time to build a bridge, a bridge from policy to practice, from dialogue to delivery.

Introducing the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026.

Not just another forum, a fundamental break from business as usual. For months, ECA and partners have been building momentum through the pre-forum Stocktake webinar series, convening experts on green minerals, AI and jobs, youth entrepreneurship and regional value chains under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

These sessions are shaping real solutions for youth employment across Africa.

One mission across 3 stages, where ideas compete before the forum, solutions will be discussed during the forum, and impact is tracked for scale-up. At the Africa Development Impact Forum, the Knowledge Fair tells the story of the journey, from ideas to action, and to impact. Africa needs 15 million jobs every year, not pilots, not papers, proven and scalable solutions.

During the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026, policymakers, the private sector, youth, and researchers gather to discuss durable solutions.

We invite you all to the Knowledge Fair Exhibition Area, where you will immerse yourself into a journey of success stories and scalable initiatives that are building a new Africa, the bridge to a brighter future.

Africa has no shortage of research, no shortage of policies, no shortage of promises. But too often, impact stays out of reach, and this is the implementation gap, where evidence is delayed and ideas fade before they are actioned upon.

And scaled up.

It's time to build a bridge—

a bridge from policy to practice, from dialogue to delivery.

Introducing the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026.

Not just another forum— a fundamental break from business as usual. For months, ECA and partners have been building momentum through the pre-forum Stocktake webinar series, convening experts Experts on green minerals, AI, and jobs, youth entrepreneurship, and regional value chains under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

Ladies and gentlemen, may I kindly invite you to take your seats so we can begin the forum? Thank you. Mesdames et messieurs, je vous invite à prendre place afin que nous puissions commencer le forum. Merci beaucoup. If you have a friend, if you have a colleague who is not yet here, please give them a call and ask them to come back in so we can begin. Thank you.

Africa has no shortage of research, no shortage of No shortage of promises. But too often, impact stays out of reach, and this is the implementation gap. Where evidence is delayed, and ideas fade before they are actioned and scaled up.

It's time to build a bridge, a bridge from policy to practice, from dialogue to delivery.

Introducing the Africa Development Impact Forum 2026.

Not just another forum, a fundamental break from business as usual. For months, ECA and partners have been building momentum through the pre-forum Stocktake webinar series, convening experts on green minerals, AI and jobs, youth entrepreneurship and regional value chains under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

These sessions are shaping real solutions for youth employment across Africa.

Ladies and gentlemen, may I kindly invite you to take your seats so we can begin the forum.

Thank you.

Mesdames et messieurs, je vous invite à prendre place afin que nous puissions commencer le forum. Merci. Distinguished guests, welcome back. We hope you enjoyed the knowledge fair and had engaging conversations over the coffee break. In light of current health considerations in the region, we kindly encourage you to use the hand sanitizers positioned throughout the hall. Thank you for your cooperation. We will now move to the Policy and Strategy Hackathon. This session will be moderated by Miss Mona Idrisu, Head of Youth Employment and Skills at the African Center for Economic Transformation. Please give her a round of applause. I'll also like to invite our distinguished highly respected and incorruptible panel of judges. Please give them a warm round of applause as I mention their names. Mr. Saeed Adejumobi, Director of Strategic Planning, Oversight, and Results Division at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa. Please stand for recognition. Ms. Aida Azmi, Joint Managing Director and Partner at Pedmond Dew Associates. Mr. Matthias Knab, Director of the Regional Service Center for Africa at the United Nations Development Program. Mr. Andrew Aliyu, Regional Economist at the Regional Office for Africa, International Labor Organization. Ms. Rita Bissonauth, Representative to Ethiopia and Director of the Liaison Office to the African Union and ECA, United Nations. Ms. Idrisu, you have the floor. This session will run for 90 minutes in Japanese style. Thank you.

Thank you. I'm excited. Who else is? Who has been to a hackathon? Just by show of hands. Well, this session is where we do things a little bit different. We have here a panel of fantastic young innovators who have been tasked with just one question. They are here to hack the jobs challenge. How do we create quality jobs for young people? I'm always amazed when we do these policy hackathons, some of the amazing ideas that reminds us that some of the solutions we need on this continent, we have them. the human capital. We just need to ensure we continue creating platforms like this to make sure that young people are heard, and not just heard, but they themselves are part of the co-creation process for some of the solutions we need. This is how this is going to go. I'm going to give each contestant here 5 minutes. It's an elevator pitch style. 5 minutes, and my esteemed panel of judges are going to have the difficult task of telling us who wins. But not today. Tomorrow is when we announce the ultimate winners. After the first 3 pitches, I'll take questions from our judges very briefly and then move on to the next. Without wasting more time, Sadiki, are you ready? Are you ready? Okay, round of applause for Sadiki. They need the energy. Let's go. So Sadiki is from Rwanda, and he will be presenting on what he calls the Africa Works Platform. All right, your clock starts now.

Good morning, dear Excellencies. My name is Rigwe Masadiki from Rwanda. I'm here to present the AfricaWorks platform. So through my background education in law and also with a master's in AI, I have examined critical challenges in our communities. We've also— regarding today our statistics, over 60% youth in Africa are under 25 years, and also 19% are SMEs or business. Also, 17% are youth unemployed or underemployed. So Africa Work Platform is addressed to address those gaps. We've created integrated system designed to connect youth to skills and entrepreneurship and also the enterprise at a large scale. So as you see, there is about a challenge. And also in 2050, in 1 in 3, there will be an African. That is a big challenge, so we have to look on it. And also a big challenge is an education which mismatch in the skills needed in the market. Also, with the SMEs challenge, there is 19% of Africa critical challenge, and also poor connection of the investors and the lenders. So what is the root of those problems? First is the skills match, limited access to finance, poor institutional fragmented job, weak SME digitalization, high informal employment. And then we are bringing— sorry, we are just bringing a solution. Our solution is found in 4 pillars. The first one, skills development, AI-powered dropshipping, entrepreneurial support, financial and market access. That is our solution. Everyone, they can see our solution, how it goes. And the second one, what makes us unique, we are just focused on the 4 things: youth, SMEs, government, and also investors. But the best thing is our Africa platform is Pan-Africans. So Pan-Africa, you have to love our Africa. We have to develop our Africa. And also we combine education, employment, entrepreneurship, finance in one platform. Do you think this is a big thing for all Africans? There is big impact. Over 50,000 youth directly engaged and also 10,000 over SME will be supported and also 5,000 jobs will be also created. And the second one, which is good, the economy of Africa will be developed as youth have the energy, have the power to develop the economy of Africa, and also the poverty will be decreased. That is the big impact to our Africa Impact Forums. And then youth employment over 30 to 50 through certificate skilled and also 20 to 40 will be also even increased. So allow me to access about key partners. The partners also government, youth ICT education, as in private, as financial institution, technology, and civil society. So inclusivity, we have about rural and urban access, low cost, and also youth digital informal, multilanguage platform that is good for Africans, disability-sensitive interface design. So there is resources required, digital platform development, training content mentorship, seed funding, AI, AI, and also data management. So about scalability and also sustainability, employer recruitment, a personal service, premium digital tools, and for SMEs, training certificate, credit revenue, and also market extension, commission fees, data extinguishing, analytic, and for institution. So thank you so much, Aroas, to stop by here. I would like to welcome everyone here to support Africa Work Platform. Africa Work Platform is not for a job but also is for loving our Africa. Thank you so much.

Thank you, Sadiki, and thank you for doing this on time. So we'll move quickly to the next. We have Christian Soukla. from Ethiopia, who will be pitching on an integrated industrial ecosystem model. So a round of applause.

Excuse me. Good morning, members of the jury. Africa does not lack industrial potential, lack of ecosystem to connect workforce, production, and market into scalable job. I'm Christian Suklan, Managing Director of CS Textile Limited, 25 years experience across Africa. Today I'm pitching the Industrial Activation Ecosystem, a battle-tested platform, rapid scalable creation job. The problem: Africa needs 72.6 million jobs by 2030. Our industrial system is failing. We have over 60% of the factories sit idle. Market depends on expensive import. We have a skill program, produce graduates without job. We have workforce factory and market integrated fragment, no work, no scalable impact. Our solution is integrated industrial activation. We connect what Africa already has. No new infrastructure required. We activate existing. Underutilized industrial asset into permanent employment engine. Implement of evidence— implement of evidence, 25 years, Our field-tested, our field-tested industrial-proof laser-to-apparel skill production link manufacturing hub, GFA, GIZ, and Europe BMZ. Development Bank of Ethiopia full factory activation and skill transfer for no-pitch manufacturing. GFA Consulting Group especially endorses our technical expertise and reliability. Job impact. Our model is scaled predictably. Procon, 1,000 youth per 90-day cycle. 3 annual cycles, 3,000 people ready youth per year. This model is different— sorry, this model is different. It is SDG 9, the strategy. Traditional program, you have skill transfer. From this model, you're having production integrated. No temporary workshop, permanent skill transfer, activating SDG 4, SDG 8, 9, and 10. Conclusion.

Next, we have Solomon Boakye, Credify, and he is from Ghana.

Thank you.

Good morning, everyone. My name is Solomon, presenting on Credify. Now, the challenge— please, the slide. The slide.

All right.

So we have— this is Samuel, and Samuel keeps applying for jobs, but the responses he gets is that he does not have the experience, and so he remains in a cycle of no job, no experience. Why? Because he's a young graduate and university did not prepare him for work life. This is the issue in Ghana. In Ghana, for example, we have about 3,000 people who enter the labor market every year, out of which about 60% still remain unemployed or underemployed. If you look at those within the age of 15 to 24, we have about 34.4% of these people who are unemployed. Now, according to research, it showed that HR— about 89% of HR leaders avoid hiring these recent graduates.

Why?

Because they agree that it's too expensive to hire them, and about 73% of employers say that university did not prepare them. And so we have employers on one side who say that they need evidence, they need proof before they can give these students work, but we have the graduates who are also on the other side who need the work before they gain the experience. That then creates a credibility gap because there's no structured transition system at scale that can convect this education into a trusted performance. And this is where Credify comes in. So Credify is a proposed digital work-based learning ecosystem that enables university students to complete real tasks from organizations, get them verified, and build trusted portfolio of performance before they leave school. Our solution brings together— creates an ecosystem of university, government, and private sectors and help them transition from education to employment resulting in faster school transition, improved employability, and reduced hiring risk. Why this approach? This approach because research shows that a work-integrated learning approach is one of the best ways for which we can solve this issue, and it has been shown examples in terms of apprenticeship, project-based learning, and many others. How does it work? So we have organizations and private companies, especially SMEs, who have issues recruiting these people. Post-project, students get noticed, using a real-time— we are looking at working it in a real-time mode so that they get noticed, that they accept. This is not— they don't apply, they accept the project. Work is verified using an AI-assisted and also an HR-assisted, and then badges are given. With that, the student builds a portfolio of work. Who benefits? The students benefit, employers and organizations benefit, universities benefit, and government also get access to real data for them to be able to track the mismatch between skill and all that. In terms of employers, they are able to contribute to the future of youth development because the skills they give out also determines what— it shows that this is the area that the world is going, and so universities can inculcate these things into their planning. We have existing platforms like LinkedIn, Job, but these people are not specifically built for students. They don't focus on transitioning to work. They are not real work-based. They don't verify proofs. And also, students must apply, and so it does not work generally for somebody who is not within Accra or someone who is not within a particular place. And so with Credify, it creates an ecosystem bringing all these people together, and so with one work, it can access— a lot of students can access just by accepting a project and get it worked on. In terms of impact, it will increase employment transition by 25 to 35%. It will reduce employment costs by 20 to 40%.

Thank you.

Access to work will also increase by 3 to 5 times, and then faster graduate job search transition. This is based on work that has been done by Singapore that showed that this project is actually workable, and also research that also showed that when we combine this, it will actually work. It aligns with SDG 8, Decent Work and Growth, 9, and then SDG 4. Scalability. Phase 1, I'm looking at working with about 2 universities, get SMEs on board, recruit about 10 to 5 students. Build micro projects, build a core verification engine, and then we start. We expand about to 10 universities, and then we are able to expand after within 18 to 36 months about to West Africa and all that. Is this scalable? Yes. How is this scalable? Because we have data. It will be like a data market data intelligence, and so SMEs can pay to have this access to this data subscription also, especially for SMEs or maybe businesses or even individuals. like that one to get optional verified certificates, they will also be paid for later. The resources we need, we need an MVP deployment, phase 1, phase 2, we build the MVP, we launch, and then we pilot. If this had been in place, this system had been in place, I'm not sure Samuel's first day in university to the day he leaves university, he wouldn't have been invisible in the labor market. So join us in building a system where the story of young Africans is changed. Thank you.

Fantastic.

So many innovative ideas, and we're just 3 pitches in. We'll take 2 minutes of clarification questions if our judges have any before we move on to the next set. However, questions— if you panelists, if a question is directed to you after all pitches, before you answer, right? So we're just taking the questions for now.

Any?

None? Fantastic, we can go on. Oh, Saeed.

Okay, thank you very much, and thank you very much to the contestants. I think you've done very well. My question is to Chandrika. Can you kindly tell us how your model is different from the industrial park? What is different from what you are presenting to us from the industrial parks, existing industrial parks that we have on the continent? And being from Ethiopia, this is something that, you know, you must be familiar with in terms of the Ethiopian experience with industrial parks. What is different with this, with your integrated model? integrated industrial ecosystem model. Thank you.

Yes, thank you very much. Mine is to Solomon. It would be helpful to hear from you whether there is already a prototype of what you talked about. I know you mentioned Singapore, or whether there is a pilot currently in Ghana, and also how tasks will be verified. How employers will recognize the badges, because the badge system is quite interesting, but how will all that be linked in terms of verification by employers, and how the platform will ensure enough quality projects for youth? I hope I'm clear.

Yes.

I'm saying, how would— is there a prototype currently in place? You mentioned Singapore, but in terms of Ghana, is there a pilot that you have tested? My concern is also how the task will be verified. You talked about badges, and how will employers recognize these badges?

Yes, please.

Okay, so we'll take the answers after the roundup. I'll take the last question from Rita.

Thank you very much, dear colleagues. My question goes to the colleague from Rwanda. I'm just thinking about how it— I was not very clear about how this Africa Works platform is going to be— is going to work in practice. How did you set it up? How was the collaboration with the different entities of the government, with the private sector? Because you talked a lot about skilling, about working in education. We have a lot of educational platforms, so how are you referring to those? to improve yours and really make it sustainable and useful for what you are planning. Thank you.

Great.

Thank you. So we'll go back to our pitches, and at the end, our contestants will have a chance to respond to our judges' questions. So let's get back to it. Next, I have Christian from Cameroon, who is pitching on the idea of IT Cola. A round of applause.

Bien, bonjour. Good morning, everyone. I'd like to speak in French.

Good morning, everyone.

I'll speak in French. Thank you very much. My name is Christiane Cheshire. I hail from Cameroon, and I'd like to speak to Africa. Every year we need to create 15 million jobs in order to achieve our 2030 goal of about 75 million goals. Since we started working with entrepreneurs in the rural area, we provide them training, coaching, as well as economic opportunities. We realize that for those entrepreneurs that stopped at the training level. Many could not progress. After 6 months, they were still struggling. However, we realized that those that had an integrated support combining incubation, access to funding, agrofood support could build their enterprises. Their enterprises and so they were growing. In reality, what we observe is that the problem is not a matter of talent. It's not about entrepreneurial capacities. It's about the system and this has been raised in other presentations. The issue— the issue here is that when we are in the rural area, we observed that about 60% of microentrepreneurs lack access to entrepreneurial or business skills, as I mentioned, and as well as finance and market. And among those, about less than 15% can access formal banking coverage due to guarantee constraints. That said, in rural agriculture, Rural areas, agriculture, and green economy constitute opportunities in which everyone can invest. Structurally, there are 5 constraints that impede the development of entrepreneurs. The first, the integration of skills, whether it be coaching, finance, as well as limited access to finance. And this is even greater for women with accumulated constraints due to the culture, due to customs, and we realize that to date value chains are fragmented and impede or prohibit any integration globally. There is an ecosystem in which stakeholders work in silo. So the challenge here is to establish coordination in this ecosystem and not just work with entrepreneurs. So the solution that we provide will support youth and women in creating jobs through incubation, through access to adequate finance, and this will leverage 4 essential pillars. First, capacity building and in terms of business skills or financial literacy, as well as promoting digital tools as levers of acceleration. We would have to strengthen every technology, every technique, some value addition in order for enterprises to become competitive with regard to the quality of products that they provide in terms of value chains, inclusive financing, and structured markets, because it is in structured markets that will foster growth. And ultimately, and this is an experience that we have tried and it is successful, is the coordination of stakeholders by bringing them closer to the communities and entrepreneurs in rural areas. We were fortunate in this approach that we were able, based on community experiences, to establish an electronic bank for entrepreneurship that facilitated the mobilization of resources. So the savings for health, among others, was divested to investment. This was one of the accelerators on which we are going to work substantially.

Thank you. Next, we're going to hear from Burkina Faso. Luc is going to be talking to us around green and inclusive employment.

Creation.

A round of applause for you.

Bonjour, mesdames.

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for the opportunity to. It must be said that REVI initially targeted people who had lost everything overnight, people who were vulnerable, youth seeking their first jobs or seeking resources to support their studies, etc. The number thereof is increasing.

Yes.

In Burkina Faso and in Africa as a whole, they are affected by multidimensional poverty. You can look at the figures displayed on the screen. They do not have social security. Our response is not aid, but it is a system that auto-funds itself. The objective is an approach for graduation, a way to better manage businesses coaching, bringing together sustainable agriculture. I am Modargo Luke. I am here one of the founders of this initiative. With regards to agriculture, it must be said that the feed account for over 70%. However, We have the production of the feed that causes one of the— that stands as one of the major causes of deforestation, 80% according to FAO. Our alternative in order to support agriculture avians, the global demand for white flesh is increasing. Biofarming demand is increasing across the world. It must be said with regards to scalability is that the maximum cost is $330 for a net revenue of $600 for the first year. The initial investment is doubled within the first 12 months and then our funding finances the projects. Every partner therefore contributes and establishes a financial background and this helps develop their activities beyond the first input. This is a robust basis with some—

Yes.

support in terms of coaching and education. We have a robust team, 60 households, and a return on social investments of $6 for every $1 invested. We are currently supported by 2 international incubators, Bridge for Billions, among others. We aim to support about 50 million successful entrepreneurs, and we seek partnerships across Africa. We are setting the foundations for employment in Africa and sustainable development for everyone. Our approach seems to be the most cost-friendly alternative. BRAC has demonstrated it in Bangladesh. We support it. Becoming an entrepreneur and independent requires a lot and what matters most is discipline and support. What matters is that you start, not that you start big. This is what we are doing. The poor can therefore give back. Nobody must be left aside. We need— Thank you very much.

Well done. So we'll take another round of questions, 2 minutes from our judges. Any questions for the 3 that just presented?

Okay.

Go on.

My question is to Mr. Christian from IT Cola. The premium-to-premium conversion model, so at what point does the beneficiary transition from free to paid services, and what conversion rate have you observed in the pilot stage? and how viable is this program without donor funding? Thank you.

Any more questions? Andrew.

Yeah, yeah. Thank you very much.

My question is to, um, microphones please.

I'm here.

Thank you, and apologies. Yes, my question is to Mr. Wadrago. In the submission, you spoke about AI credit scoring. I just want clarity around the appropriateness of that.

in a fragile setting.

Thank you.

Thank you, Andrew. Matthias? Oh, you're fine. Okay, great.

Said?

Yeah, thank you very much, Madam Moderator. My question is also to Adrago Luke. I find your proposal quite interesting on 3 or 4 accounts. One, you are looking at waste to wealth. How do we create wealth out of waste? I think that's extremely important. Also, your focus on IDPs. I think oftentimes that's a forgotten category that we don't really look at in terms of issues of entrepreneurship. And finally, you are focusing on women, and I think that's extremely important. But my question to you is to ask whether is this an ongoing project that you're involved in? If that's the case, what has been your experience? What's the success story that you have, especially when you talk about the funding being based on the issue around solidarity rather than clear agenda in terms of how the repayment back will be done. You talk about— there doesn't seem to be a very strong incentive regime on how the funds being invested into it will be reclaimed. Secondly, it's about sustainability. What do you see about the sustainability of this project in the long term? Do you think it's something that is quite sustainable, given— I suspect if it's something that's already ongoing, your experience so far?

Thank you.

Great. So we'll go to the next round of pitches, and next we have Eva, who is going to pitch on Kenya. solar workforce, and climate resilience. A round of applause for Eva.

Good afternoon.

Her presentation isn't up yet.

I know a majority of you have ever relied on something you assumed would work because it had always worked before. What I'm holding here is an insulin vial. Millions of Africans depend on insulin for survival. Now I want you to imagine a nurse, Amina, in a rural hospital. She opens a hospital fridge to remove life-saving insulin and finds that it is spoiled because the solar system that was powering the whole hospital is no longer working. The insulin got spoiled not because there was no— there were no solar panels or sunlight, but because of poor installations by untrained technicians. Across Africa, solar adoption is growing rapidly, but the workforce and delivery systems are not keeping pace. Many technicians are informally trained, leading to poor installations. Industry reports consistently show high rates of system underperformance within the first 12 months— first 12 to 24 months. When solar systems fail, people lose trust not only in the technician but also in the solar system itself. There is— there is also a problem of limited enterprise growth. Talented technicians lack business infrastructure such as financing tools, preventing them from scaling into sustainable solar enterprises. Our solution is Solar Enterprise Network Africa, or SENA. SENA's vision is to create thousands of green jobs while building Africa's largest network of certified solar technicians and renewable energy enterprises, accelerating economic inclusion. The model operates through 2 key pillars. First, workforce development through training. Second, solar enterprise development. Unlike traditional programs that stop at training, SENA helps them launch, grow solar enterprises, connect them to customers, provide access to financing and suppliers. Imagine a technician named John. In the traditional system, John John completes training and then struggles to find customers, secure equipment, and build credibility. In the SENA model, John immediately joins a professional network. He receives customer leads, business support, supplier access, and technical mentorship. He starts earning from day one while building a sustainable business. The expected impact is significant. In the first year, SENA will train and certify 100 solar technicians, establish 20 solar enterprise clusters, create at least 1,500 direct and indirect jobs, and provide solar solutions to over 20,000— 2,000 households and SMEs. Within 3 years, we aim to scale to 10,000 certified technicians support 1,000 youth-led solar enterprises, create over 100 green jobs, and deliver more than 10 megawatts of distributed solar capacity across Africa. Build employment— SENA will improve installation quality, reduce system failure, increase customer trust, and accelerate Clean energy adoption. The initiative directly contributes to several sustainable development goals, including no poverty, affordable and clean energy, decent work and economic growth, industry and innovation, sustainable communities, and climate action. Successful companies like Solar Sister, Gogla Sun King, have shown how decentralized solar networks can create jobs while expanding energy access. The model is highly feasible. Rather than building new infrastructure, SENA leverages existing TVET institutions, solar suppliers, business mentors, and financial partners. Inclusivity is at the center of the model. At least 40% of women— of participants will be women, while recruitment will prioritize unemployed youth. Sena is designed to scale using a hub-and-spoke model. We partner with existing training institutions, suppliers, and financial partners rather than building new infrastructure from scratch. Sena will empower Africa's youth to power Africa's future, one solar entrepreneur at a time. Africa does not lack solar panels. Africa does not lack sunlight. Africa lacks enough skilled professionals to ensure solar systems deliver lasting impact.

Fantastic. I appreciate all my panelists for sticking to time. We're going to move on next to Tomfe from Togo, who is going to pitch on an integrated agro-industrial ecosystem.

Thank you for giving me the floor. I'm—

my name is Simo Atomfe Mathias. I hail from Togo. I am very pleased to be here this morning to present my project. I am an economist, a planning expert specialized in M&A. Today, I'm going to introduce a public action, a concrete public action, Integrated Agro-Systems. Our initiative helps small-scale farmers in Togo to combat asymmetries on the market by deploying connected markets. The outcome, an immediate increase by 25% of their revenues and the creation of 10,000 to 50,000 jobs for youths and women in the rural areas. Let's dive into this topic immediately. The problem— let's look at the figures. By 2030, Africa needs to create over 72 million decent jobs. In Togo, It's the subject of a paradox. On one hand, we have a strong industrial need with the PEA, and on the other hand, there are thousands of small farmers, small-scale farmers and producers without data on stocks, with limited access to inputs, and facing pests After harvest, the problem is the complete disconnect between rural production and industrial value chains. To break that glass ceiling, we are not proposing a simple mobile app, but a public policy, an integrated public policy based on 4 fundamental pillars. First, we established regional— decentralized regional agro-hubs in order to bring closer industries to production areas for strategic products such as rice. Secondly, we structure entrepreneurs into strong cooperatives in order to structure our supply chains. Here is our innovation. We integrate the circular economy. Nothing is lost. Rice residues are processed locally into animal feed and organic compost, creating a wave of jobs, green jobs. And ultimately, we deploy some degree of technology through SSD code and mobile payment to guarantee the trackability of volumes, and this without any internet limitations. Let's move straight to the impacts. The impacts of the strategy are measurable and based on keen data, based on the empirical model of the World Bank and the J-PAL on the integration of African markets, and we are targeting in the next 4 months a net increase from 25% to 30% of revenues, as well as a reduction by 40% of post-harvest losses, as well as the creation of 10,000 to 50,000 formal and sustainable jobs for the youth. This project is not charity. It creates value directly aligning on Agenda 2063 as well as SDGs. The roadmap. This policy is very realistic. It is hinged on a PPP model in which the state provides land and basic infrastructure while the private sector pilots the industries and factories. Over the first 6 months, We have a clear timeline. Months 1 and 2 will be dedicated to the planning and development of the zones. Second month, the training of youth, and by the 6th month, the first pilot center will be fully operational. I see that.

Thank you. Thank you. Next, we have Nandi. So Nandi will be speaking on the Agribusiness Trade Corridor Pilot, and Nandi is from South Africa. A round of applause.

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. So Tom Fee has already given you a sneak preview to my presentation. I think that alone should score me some brownie points. My name is Nandi Waramkwanazi. I am an entrepreneur. I am an SMME development practitioner, and I'm also the owner of Nanlo Organic Farm. Today, I'll be discussing a challenge that Africa has been grappling with and also presenting a solution that Nanlo Organic Farm and Algonquin Trading, which is an AFCFTA trading company are seeking to launch through a pilot. Africa needs 72.6— my apologies.

Okay.

Africa needs 72.6 million new jobs. And currently, 6 out of 10 young people are unable to find stable jobs. When you compare those stats with what we're currently seeing, in that the intra-African agricultural trade has tripled between the years of 2003 and 2025, this shows that there is a demand for agri-products, and our experience working with African agripreneurs has also shown that they do have the products to meet the demand. However, trade is not happening at the rate that can address Africa's unemployment challenge. What we've seen is that a lot of agri-SMMEs have little to no trade knowledge, and unfortunately, this means that they also don't have access or don't adequately know about the already existing B2B platforms as well as the e-commerce platforms. Of course, those that do look to lose anywhere between 10% to 20% transaction value when they're looking to trade across the borders. The challenge that we've seen is that the businesses are registered and domestically operating at a domestic level. However, they do not have the cross-border trade formalization that they need in order to to meet the compliance to trade across the continent. Currently, we know that there are a lot of trade programs that have looked to bridge the gap that a lot of the entrepreneurs have. However, they are excluding those that are not only export-ready, but are also strong with the production capacity. Lastly, we do understand and we do know that there are a lot of platforms that are currently available on the continent. However, many work with the assumption that these businesses are already compliant and they understand all the legal requirements that they have to fulfill. Now, our initiative is different in that a lot of the programs that are currently in the market are operating at either a training level or a policy level. Our initiative seeks to operate at the transactional level. We will be basing our initiative on 4 pillars. Firstly, it's the cross-border formalization. We are in final talks with SEDA, which is the Small Enterprise Development Agency in South Africa, as well as MSMEDA, that's based in Egypt, to help the entrepreneurs that are already on board on their programs and already trained and already have compliance domestically to be able to get the compliance that they need to cross the— to trade across the border. Secondly, we're looking to integrate an already existing PAPS digital payment system. Again, this system helps entrepreneurs get a competitive rate and also close deals quickly. We're also looking to integrate trade gap finance, which is also going to help the entrepreneurs leverage and close deals without losing orders based on a lack of working capital. The match that we are bringing as Elgandi and Nenloi means that we're operating at either side, at either side of the corridor, so we have the necessary connections. Now, we will be implementing this in 4 phases, with the first phase already in action. We've already identified 35% of the needed 50 enterprises. Through this, we are going to be helping them get formalized across the border. We are looking to onboard an additional 150 in the second phase, and third phase, which will be between 2028 and 2029, we're going to be onboarding 500 entrepreneurs. Of course, so that we ensure that we are not donor reliant, the model is designed designed to have 4 income streams for the initiative. Firstly, it's trade margins. Secondly, it's financing spreads, as well as services fees. And through one of our partners, Ariel for Africa, we are looking to also get deal flow fees. So, like I mentioned, we've already onboarded the partners that we needed. We do have Ariel Advisory, who will be responsible for the advisory and investment readiness. We have SEDA and MS Mida that are going to be helping with the formalization of the businesses, and currently we are in conversations with Youth Entrepreneurs Network as well as the Rotary Club in both Egypt and South Africa so that we ensure that those who operate at the grassroots level are not left behind.

Okay. Time up.

Thank you. Thank you, Nandi. We have our final speaker who unfortunately isn't able to join us in person, but is ready to join us online. If we can have Madocci, who is speaking from DRC and will be pitching on decentralized productive transformation framework. Madocci, can you hear us?

Yes.

Technical, can we get Madocci? I understand he's online, but he has really bad connection, and so there's a bit of challenge. So whilst we're trying to get Madocci, I'll just go to the judges for their questions for the 3 that just pitched. Um, so judges, any questions? Okay, Aida.

Sorry, thank you. My question is to Ms. Nandi. Congrats on demonstrating the live cross-border transaction between South Africa and Egypt. My question is, out of those transactions, how many have completed verified transactions, and what's their average transaction value? Second question is, how is this proposal creating jobs at scale?

Thank you. Just before you come in, I see we have Madocci. I would like us to go take his pitch. Madocci, can you hear me?

Good afternoon. Excellencies, good afternoon, dear panelists and participants. My name is Mardoshe from the Democratic Republic of Congo. I hope you are able to hear me. I have currently connectivity issues. Apologies for that. Let me present my work, which is a decentralized productive transformation framework. This idea came out from the groundwork in the eastern part of the DRC, in the Achopo Province, in Ituri Province, and also South Kivu Province, as well as in the North Kivu Province, where I supported several entrepreneurs and saving— community saving networks, digital entrepreneurs, and local economic organizations, my experience led me to a simple conclusion. Africa does not have a deficit of entrepreneurs. It rather has coordination Issue, coordination-related problems. Let me share my screen. Again, I am facing connectivity problems and I am struggling on how to share my screen, so please bear with me. I hope you are able to see my screen. In the East DRC, I worked with several stakeholders, isolated workers. We have women social movements, agricultural cooperatives.

Apologies, we are struggling to hear the speaker. Very difficult to translate, to interpret the speaker. Very bad connectivity, unable to interpret.

According to the UN researchers, Africa has—

Obviously, Madocci is experiencing some technical hitches, but to ensure that he gets a fair chance at being judged, He's going to tape his pitch and we will send it to the judges so that they include his submission as part of their deliberations. Rest assured that we're going to Plan B and his pitch will be submitted directly to the judges. Thank you. Let's go back to the questions. Matthias?

Thank you very much. I think I will come back to Luke. Clearly a very strong and evidence-based speech, but it would be useful if you can clarify the risk management approach, especially in relation to insecurity in beautiful Burkina Faso, the risk management approach in relation to animal health, for instance, since you'll be using a lot of waste. And then, of course, Solomon did talk about the issue around AI. I will be interested in looking at the risk in relation to the ethical use of AI in terms of credit scoring. And to Nandi, my sister from South Africa, again, very concrete and implementation-ready pitch, but it would be very useful, for instance, if you can really also convince us about the job creation logic. You put some numbers out there about 50, then 150, then 500, but our ambition is bigger than that in terms of getting us to a projected 10,000 and 50,000 jobs. So with your estimation of 50, 50, 150, and 500. It's a little bit confusing how ambition or how ambitious you are. Then lastly, if you can also clarify the financing model that you have and also the confirmed contributions from partners, for instance, would be very useful.

Okay, thank you. If I could particularly request questions for Tom Fe or Eva, and then I can come to— if there are any questions for the two. I don't note any questions that's been directed to them. Saeed, yeah.

Thank you very much, Madam Moderator. My question, first question is to Eva. Eva, I think this is a very straightforward model. that you've presented to us. It focuses on technical training on solar panels. For this to be much easier and for us to also increase energy access, as it were, which is a renewable energy, I think this is quite good. But 2 questions for you. One is, will this be anchored In a technical— with a technical college or university, how will the training be facilitated? Second question, what is the sustainability of the solar enterprise network that you are talking about? How will it be sustained, as it were? Because the sustainability is extremely important to make sure that this, you know, is able to have a life of its own. Madam Moderator, who is the second person you wanted us to speak to?

Tom Faye from Togo on the integrated agro-industrial ecosystems. If you have any questions for him.

Let me give the floor to—

Okay, okay. Thank you so much. My question to Mr. Tom Faye, The industrial hub typically requires significant upfront capital, especially for cold chain and infrastructure. So what is the projected ROI and estimated payback period for the intended anchor investor for your first hub? Thank you.

Okay, great. So I'm going to come back to my panelists to take the questions that our judges have asked them to respond to. So I'm going to go in order, so no need to come back to me. After you answer, you just pass it on to the one next sitting to your left so that we can make up for time. So, Sadiki.

Let me just answer the question from about scalability. and about sustainability. About scalability, Africa Work Platform also, the pilot will focus in 1 and 2 countries for the first time. And also, we have a partnership of— and we have the— we have the partnership from the AU and the EAC and ECOWAS and even SADC.

Thank you.

So that will be a part of the Africa Watch platform. And also for the standabilities, there is employer recruitment plus and placement. As I said before, in our solution— if it's possible, they can just show my slide— in our solution, there is what you call AI Match Job, where we use AI for recruiting, for applying for the job. It's a master AI. Where the youth, they can put their CV, they can also put information in order to, to see the employer. We just go to the Africa platform for searching the employer who is, who is competent, who is competence. That is about AI. And also, as I said before, and the mastery, um, the mastery in AI, that's why I have to design AI like that in order to solve the problem of job in Africa for the youth. And about skills, some panel who asked me about education, normally the young people in Africa increasingly with skills, but the problem is that the skills they have is skills which is matched in the market. So as I tell you before, AfricaWorks platform is designed to raise those gap between skills, between education and skills needed in the market. Where in our solution we have a skills development. Skills development, the youth will gain the short course about agriculture, about digital, about digital, and also about manufacturing. It means those skills, those can help a youth to create a job and also to make their own job. So I think the last question was about how AfricaWorks will be— will have a partnership with a government. Exactly. This is a big point. We have to look on it because the government is the one who puts the laws and regulations regarding to the employer and employment. And also we have seen that the big problem we have, the high— there is high informal employers. So when we say high employer informal, as lawyer, I just understand what is the meaning. So you have to have a job, you don't have a contract, you don't have insurance, you don't have anything. So high informal will be also reduced as a big gap. So That's why we need to collaborate with the government and even for the ICT, because we have an AI, and also we have to collaborate with the Minister of Education, like TVETs, who produce the skills needed in the market. I think those are the questions for me.

Okay, so I will employ the rest of our panelists to try to keep your responses as brief as you can. we can make up for time.

Christian?

If I'm not wrong, you were asking what's the difference that's made in Ethiopia. You know, our project, Integrated Industrial Activation, it is for textile, apparel, and leather industry. Okay, so what we are doing We are doing the existing infrastructure, what it's having for TVET and manufacturing SME, what is not functional in Ethiopia. We're having so many TVET which is giving normal training. And the lack— what is the difference, if you can see on the screen, you know, in manufacturing, they cannot take employer to train. They're going to lose their production. So our system is going to provide them 90 days of training to make them highly productive and then transfer them to the industry. These are the easiest way that textile apparel and leather industry can accommodate a lot of workers with a short period of time. If you go on in TVET, TVET, they are giving you training in short period period of training, they're not making their worker sustainable skill. But with our system, we're going to provide them 90 days of training, would make them highly efficiency, and it will be sustainable. And also we're going to apply the SDG reducing inequality with another country. Why? We are giving some people who don't have education the chance to work, improve their life. in the textile, apparel, and leather industry. I hope I answered your question, and you were having another question if I'm not wrong. Thank you very much.

Sorry.

All right, thank you, Mr. Matthias, for your question. Yes, so Singapore has practiced this and they started it around 2015, and currently they have about 1.5 million young people who have joined. The other is that they didn't focus only on students. They focused on students and as well those who are working. And they have about 23,000 SMEs who have signed up to the platform, of which 97% is SME. In terms of how it will work, so when the companies, organizations are signing up, here they'll create a criteria on which the work would be verified. And so when the work is submitted, we'll have an AI assistant who would fill in with Kallis the criteria that has been met. Then the HR or the company, whatever, would have the chance to just glance through and just by a click verify all. But then with the colors, it will show exactly where work needs to be done and all that. Then it checks that. In terms of whether it has been started, I have 2 students currently who are building the UI/UX design. Thank you.

Okay.

Merci, Madame Aida.

Thank you very much, Madame Aida, for the question. Regarding our model to support the system. So what we need to understand here is that it's not a disguised microfinance. We rely on what exists at the community level that we call the tontine. So these are people getting together and have shares in a project So, the time of reimbursing is 12 months. Then, at the end, we try to take stock of the project. So, in our system, we have understood that when we analyzed the financial services and financial literacy, we have this within the community. We have this tontine in the community. And people use the tontine for solidarity purposes, where they also carried out economic activities. But then, we also talk about entrepreneurs. So, this means that by incorporating the digital aspect, starting from the mobile money, we can save. And this would lead a history of transactions that would be used as an input for microfinances and see how that enterprise has grown and is able to mobilize resources. And then that company would have additional requirements, additional needs, for instance, buying additional equipment. And this means that the entrepreneur would benefit from the microfinances and buy those equipment. Now, starting from the 6th month, with the savings, we have a critical mass of capital available to finance projects. That is done by vote. So projects are done by votes. So whenever someone requests financing, they submit their project and it's up to the community transparently votes on the project. This allows to this inclusive mechanism to be self-sustaining starting from the 9th month to support the entrepreneurs. The grant can end after the first year. As we said earlier, the tontine allows the preparation to access of financial resources either provided by the microfinancers or donors that can strengthen their capital, and we have this—

Yes.

traceability, and then they can monitor in real time the progress of the project. Thank you very much.

Thank you.

Eva?

No, let's go to Eva first.

Yeah.

In regard to training technicians, initially SENA will leverage on TVETs and provide certification. This approach is going to enable us scale because it is cost-effective. In regard to sustainability, revenue will come from installation services, maintenance contracts, product sales, memberships, and advanced training programs. This will help the model go beyond donor funding.

Thank you.

Okay.

Merci.

Thank you. For the digital scoring, it's not yet implemented, but it would rely on the history of savings and credits in any, any, in any context. It would be based on the digital tools like Python developing tool, and this would enable us to assess the need in connectivity, and the moderators receive in a sync manner the feedback, and we also have a human review of the results. So, the IA makes a recommendation, but we have a human judgment at the end. So, the validation is done, And this makes it auditable by the donors and several institutions. And this also addresses the issue of security because the coaches are selected within the community and trained for data collection. You also have what we call discretion. So when you take a group, if you're not a member, it's very difficult to know where that group is meeting. And they create their own saving possibilities. And we also have 3 types of addressing the saving facility. There is a pilot project that was carried out at Now we're trying to develop this project for at least 150 persons to have reliable data. And then we are supported by the incubators to document well and seriously the data and take into account the inclusion aspect and documentation aspect starting from this pilot project. Now regarding the incentives to reimburse— Thank you. We have to move on.

Nandi?

Okay, thank you very much. So I'll first start by addressing Ida's question. So when we are mentioning the live component, we're talking about the businesses that are operating in both South Africa and Egypt. So we currently have 35% of the 50 projected that we want within the first phase, which is ending in November, currently in the process to get formalized to be able to operate at a cross-border level. So the live component pertains to that. Then secondly, I think there was a bit of confusion because I did not finish the presentation regarding the 50, the 150, and 500. So those are not the number of jobs that we're looking to create, but in the first phase, those are the businesses that we're looking to onboard onto the pilot. So we've got 50, for phase 1, which is going to run— it's already in implementation. It's going to run up until the end of 2026. Then 2027, we're looking to onboard 150 businesses, and then by the end of 2030, we're looking to onboard 500 businesses. And from those businesses, that's where the 1,000 to 10,000 jobs will be created. So, they will be created at 3 different levels, at enterprise level, at the value chain level, as well as the network level. So when you move a business from trading only domestically and a business starts to move goods across the continent, normally that business then gives the capacity to other value chain players, and you create anywhere between 4 to 6 roles within just one enterprise. So that's how we're looking to create those jobs that we've projected. Then Mr. NAB also had a question pertaining to the clarity of the model and confirmed financing. So I did mention that we do have an investor readiness advisory partner, so they are currently completing an impact investing round with a UK UK-based facility. So part of that was to test the viability of already operating businesses regionally to see how well they will do with the necessary financing as well as the support. So that's one way that we are testing the viability of the initiative. Secondly, we do have 4 streams that we're looking to—

Sorry, Nandi.

My apologies. Okay, let's take Tom Faye, and then we can wrap it up. Tom Faye, in just a minute, please.

Thank you very much, Madam Aida, for the question. I work within the Ministry of Investment. We have supported the Ministry of Agriculture to put in place the Agropool project funded by a bank and other source of financing. Regarding the question, Let me address it in 2 ways on return of investment, at micro and macro level. For the micro level, I can say that the ROI revolves around a PPP model which would achieve its financial profitability soon. So we have developed a roadmap of 4 months, so between the 18th and 24th months, And this microeconomic reliability relies on the revenue flows based on commercialization of the product with high added value. We have the use of technology on B2B transactions and also the use of the circular economy principle. So we have insisted in our presentation by converting agricultural waste And transforming them into tradable products. So livestock is also one of our strategic points. The hub transforms the products and has a high profitability rate for investment— investors, private investors. Second, At macro level and social level, macro has an impact on the social. The ROI for the state is considerable in this regard.

I know I'm standing between lunch, so we're going to wrap up. We didn't have an opportunity to hear from or to take questions from the audience, but they're amongst us, and so feel free to mingle network and ask your questions to our finalists. Now, our judges have the tough task of deliberating and coming back to us with both who is the winner but also our top 5 finalists. This will be announced tomorrow, and the winner of this competition will have their, their idea as part of the simulation labs that that we're having tomorrow. So I'm looking forward to hearing who the winner is. I wish we could put out a poll just to see what our audience also think, which would be a fun interactive exercise if we can build it in. But thank you all, and a round of applause for all our finalists. Making it this far in itself is commendable. From ASSET, we have hosted our hackathons, what we call the ASSET Youth Policy Lab. We will have another one this year, so if there's any young person here who wants the opportunity to also hack at challenges faced on the continent, we will go live in August and you will have another opportunity to partake. Thank you very much, and it's been a pleasure moderating.

All right, can we please give to our excellent moderator, distinguished judges, and contestants another round of applause? And thank you for saving us a bit of time. We look forward to the results tomorrow. Distinguished guests, kindly note that the full program for the 2 days is available on the forum website, so you can follow all the proceedings. At this juncture, we will break for lunch. Lunch will be served on the upper level, and our ushers will be available to guide you. The knowledge fair remains open, and we encourage you to visit. Ah, despite our best efforts at Japanese time, I think we're still African inside. We are running slightly behind schedule. We'll therefore aim to resume, please, at 2:10 prompt. Thank you so much for your engagement so far.

Thank you.

Distinguished participants, we kindly ask you to proceed for lunch so we can commence promptly at 2:10.

Thank you.

Young people join Africa's labor market every year. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. Now, if just counting to 10 feels really long, imagine having those 12 million handshakes. Imagine talking to those 12 million people. I have met Hannah, who codes into the night when the power returns. I have met Samuel, I have met a boy who wore leather, who understands leather before he understood algebra. I have met a boy who smells of coffee and ambition, who understands grind sizes and roast profiles better than most of us here understand policy timelines. Youth are not a wave. We are names. Leaves our unrealized return. You speak of capital flows. We speak of rent. You speak of blended finance. We blend hustle and hope, praying that makes your whole— You say job creation. We say pace.