Guinea and Sierra Leone launched the AU theme of the year on “Harnessing the Demographic Dividend through Investments in Youth” at country level. The launch in Guinea was chaired by the President and Chair of the African Union, H.E. Prof. Alpha Conde and was supported by many ministers in this endeavour. There were hundreds of young people from across the country in attendance. President Conde used this launch to show his commitment to the youth agenda and the continental push to harness the demographic dividend.

UNFPA Representative, Mr Cheikh Fall participated in the event and used the platform to reaffirm UNFPA’s support for the efforts of Guinea towards harnessing the demographic dividend. The Country Office strongly supported this launch.

In Sierra Leone, the UNFPA Representative, Dr. Kim Dickson and her team worked with the government and various ministries to launch the theme during the National Youth Week. The launch was chaired by the President, H.E. Mr. Ernest Bai Koroma and supported by the Vice President, Ministers of Youth, Agriculture, Education and Deputy Ministers of Finance, ICT and Health. It was very well attended by young people from across the country and showed the commitment of the government and people of Sierra Leone towards harnessing the demographic dividend. The UNFPA team in the country worked closely with the UN Country Team and even had the financial support of UNDP. The UN agencies have produced a joint video that shows their work, commitment and contribution towards harnessing the demographic dividend in Sierra Leone.

Guinea and Sierra Leone join a growing number of countries that have taken this step that is highly recommended by the African Union. It is expected that more countries will follow shortly to help galvanize key stakeholders around the demographic dividend, formulate commitments and key actions and engender accountability to implementing the AU theme at country level.