Young people are not merely participants in climate programmes – they are driving them. This message resonated throughout the convening, particularly during a dedicated youth session that brought together innovators, entrepreneurs, and programme representatives from across the continent.
Participants shared what is already working. In their communities, young people are leading climate-smart agriculture and agroforestry initiatives, building digital platforms that connect farmers to markets, establishing maritime cooperatives that promote sustainable livelihoods, and designing leadership programmes that strengthen the capacity of emerging climate innovators. These are not pilot projects. They are proofs of concept – demonstrations that when young people are trusted and supported, they deliver.
But the session also surfaced what is not working.
| “Many of us are over-mentored and under-capitalised,” one participant observed – a sentiment that echoed throughout the convening. Training programmes and pitch competitions are abundant. What young innovators need is different: patient capital, long-term mentorship, access to technology, and pathways to influence policy decisions that affect their futures. |
Participants named the barriers plainly. Limited access to funding remains the most persistent obstacle. Mentorship networks are often fragmented or inaccessible. Policy spaces remain closed to young people, even when policies directly affect their livelihoods. And too often, youth engagement is consultative rather than substantive – a single session rather than a seat at the table.
What emerged was a clear demand: young people want to move beyond being consulted. They want to co-design, govern, and lead. They want structured mechanisms that allow them to contribute consistently to programme design, implementation, and decision-making – not just at events, but across the life of every initiative that claims to serve them.
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