Speaking at the inaugural Industrial Skills Week Africa in Lusaka, AUDA-NEPAD CEO Nardos Bekele-Thomas outlined why Africa's 60-year-old development path, while achieving respectable results, remains fragile and inadequate for 21st-century challenges. Despite positive economic performance, the poverty gap has remained stubbornly high at 48.5, highlighting the need for a fundamental reassessment of how the continent approaches development.
The demographic dividend opportunityAfrica's greatest opportunity lies in its demographics. By 2035, the continent's working-age population will exceed one billion people, representing the world's most powerful engine for productivity and innovation. However, this demographic dividend will only translate into tangible benefits if Africa can bridge the critical skills gap that currently constrains its industrial potential.
Today's reality presents a troubling mismatch between labour-market needs and available skills. This gap is holding back productivity in key sectors including manufacturing and mining, slowing value addition in agro-processing and pharmaceuticals, and threatening to leave African firms on the margins of the global green transition.