Malabo, Equatorial Guinea - African Union (AU) member countries have been urged to advance the youth agenda and adopt policies and mechanisms towards the creation of safe, decent and competitive employment opportunities by accelerating the implementation of the Youth Decade Plan of Action (2009-2018) and the Ouagadougou 2004 Plan of Action on Employment Promotion and Poverty Alleviation. This was part of the decisions reached at the just-ended (23 June to 1st July) 17th Ordinary Session in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, held under the theme: “Accelerating Youth Empowerment for Sustainable Development’’.

According to the decisions, the AU and its partners plan to elaborate a Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) framework, with a view to addressing specifically the domains of
Agriculture and Information and communications technology (ICT), while accelerating the implementation of the Youth Decade Plan of Action.

Member States are to provide the AU Commission with adequate resources for the advancement of the Youth Agenda, including the funding of the Pan African Youth Union.

They have also been asked to organize on the margins of every June/July Summit, a training programme for the Youth Volunteers, who should be deployed as soon as possible after training, including placement in the AU organs and the Regional Economic Communities as part of capacity building for young professionals.

The Commission is also to organize a side event on “Accelerating youth empowerment for Sustainable Development”, under the leadership of the Chairperson of the AU, during the United Nations High-Level Meeting on Youth in July 2011 in New York, US, whose theme is “Cooperation towards Financing Youth Development and Empowerment in Africa”.

Pana 04/07/2011