By Christiana Afua Nyarko
Accra, Oct. 24, GNA – African youth have been urged to move beyond participation in environmental governance and develop innovative, commercially viable solutions that protect natural resources while creating jobs and strengthening community resilience.
Mr Kunle Olawoyin, the Director of Communications, Policy and Advocacy at the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF), made the call as keynote speaker on the second day of the African Youth Conference on Natural Resources and Environmental Governance (AYC-NREG), held in Accra.
The two-day conference, convened by the Strategic Youth Network for Development (SYND), was held on the theme: “Scaling Youth-led Innovations for Africa’s Green Economy.”
Mr Olawoyin said, Africa’s forests, wetlands, soils and biodiversity should not be treated merely as resources for extraction, but as natural capital underpinning food security, livelihoods, public health and economic stability.
“A green economy cannot be built on the depletion of natural capital that sustains it,” he said, stressing that conservation must be linked to economic opportunity and community ownership.
He cited NCF interventions in Nigeria, including community eco-guards, sustainable agriculture, agroforestry and livelihood support, to demonstrate how conservation could create opportunities for young people and vulnerable groups.
He said communities must be treated as partners rather than obstacles, while Governments, researchers, financial institutions and the private sector should provide the policies, technical support, finance and market access needed to take successful youth-led ideas from the local level to wider markets.
Mr Samuel Bekoe, the Executive Director of the Center for Extractives and Development Africa (CEDA), however, said meaningful youth participation in natural-resource governance remained a major challenge, with young people often invited to meetings merely to give the appearance of consultation.
“Being present is not the same as having influence,” he said, and called for youth participation at every stage of the decision-making chain, from agenda-setting and policy formulation to implementation, oversight and evaluation.
Presenting research on guidelines for youth engagement in natural-resource governance, Mr Bekoe proposed institutionalising youth participation through designated focal persons, adequate budgets, transparent selection of representatives, advance access to policy documents, cost coverage, safeguarding mechanisms, feedback systems and measurable engagement standards.
He said Government agencies, Traditional Authorities, Development Partners, Private-Sector Actors and Civil Society Organisations should create formal mechanisms that give young people a genuine voice and influence rather than one-off invitations.
Madam Esenam Adzo Norgbey Apawu, the Deputy Director of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) at the Korle Klottey Municipal Assembly, in a solidarity message on behalf of the ACT Ghana, similarly urged innovators to design solutions around the everyday vulnerabilities of communities, particularly in relation to floods, disasters and disrupted livelihoods.
“Think beyond the product. Think about the people whose lives your innovation could change,” she said, as she cited renewable energy and resilience initiatives that have helped communities and essential services withstand climate-related shocks.
The speakers’ calls were reinforced by the conference’s broader emphasis on moving youth innovation from ideas to deployment through stronger partnerships, finance, mentorship, research, infrastructure and market linkages.
The AYC-NREG, which began as a national gathering in 2023 and has since expanded into a continental platform, brings together young people and stakeholders to address responsible natural-resource management, climate action, sustainable livelihoods and Africa’s green transition.
GNA
Edited by Benjamin Mensah
Reporter: Christiana Afua Nyarko
Reporter’s email address: [email protected]