Financial Times: The Rising Youth of Africa

The story of young people in the developing world leading the change that is sweeping across their parts of the world is becoming old news.

More and more, youth are being given great responsibility to shape not just their future but the future of their communities. This is the one area that Africa - when compared to other developing regions like Asia, Latin America and the Middle East - is thankfully not lagging behind.

In the new governments taking roots in Sierra Leone, Ghana and Liberia, youthful leaders are being thrust upon old structures and many are coming through the experience relatively unscathed. That is not to say that anti-youth prejudice isnt still a major concern in Afica. It is. Gray hair is still widely considered the only true mark of maturity, wsdom, judgment, ability and, of course, power.

Will the new vanguard of youthful changemakers manage to turn things around? Are they real revolutionaries who can become role models for other youth and spearhead a new movement to change the status quo in Africa? Or would they simply join their elderly compatriots and exploit their charisma for personal gain?

This Financial Times article has an interesting narrative on the rising power-youth of Africa.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/8616572e-0ad9-11df-8a26-00144feabdc0.html?nclick_check=1

--- Adriano Solange