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Youth employment: Africa should not train more, but train better

A couple of numbers are enough to understand how important the challenges related to the employability of young people on the African continent are. Currently, 15-24 year-olds represent 20% of…

A couple of numbers are enough to understand how important the challenges related to the employability of young people on the African continent are.

Currently, 15-24 year-olds represent 20% of the African population, but more than 40% of the unemployed [1]. By 2030, according to UNESCO projections, approximately 100 million young people will enter the African labor market due to the demographic structure of the continent.

Meanwhile, many companies and employers are looking for qualified [2] and therefore employable[3] individuals. There is a mismatch between available training programs and the specifics of the labor market, which is undergoing constant restructuring, in many sectors,.

Therefore, one could ask whether the great challenge today is not to train more, but to train better? Especially in the context of technical and vocational education and training, which obviously have a major role to play in promoting the integration of young people into the workplace.

In this article, we will explore three paths to improvement, based on the experience of an African SME in Côte d’Ivoire which specializes in professional training: the Institut de Management, de Gestion et d’Hôtellerie (IMGH), founded by Augustine Bro in 2009. Between December 2020 and July 2021, IMGH employees (managers, middle-managers, trainers) participated in capacity building training organized by GIZ Côte d’Ivoire.

Pathway 1: negotiate the shift to digitalization

Technical and vocational training courses are the first to have to adapt to globalization and the resulting technological changes, as they are oriented towards practice, learning, and the acquisition of work techniques. The transition to digital technology, which was supposed to be gradual, has been drastically accelerated by the Covid-19 crisis, which has had a major impact on the training sector and has redefined the demands of the labor market.

The prerequisites to successfully negotiate this shift are first of all material. In West Africa, household connectivity is not guaranteed in many rural or isolated areas. In addition to internet coverage issues, there are also the costs of the packages needed to consult the online tools necessary for learning[4]. Finally, the acquisition of computer equipment to access the content of online courses is an additional burden for students.

IMGH Focus:

To overcome these material difficulties, IMGH has put training capsules online which can be consulted via computer and mobile phone. This initiative solved both the impossibility of holding face-to-face classes at the height of the Covid crisis, and the connectivity of learners, insofar as most had at least access to the internet via their smartphones. Financial efforts will still be required to ensure that all students have access to online courses.

Since the start of the Covid crisis, IMGH has adopted a mixed approach, combining face-to-face and distance learning. This format offers many advantages: self-paced learning, customizable content, cost savings, etc. It is also a proven model that will be able to adapt to future crises, whether they are health, economic, or political.

Beyond concerns about equipment and connectivity, the greatest challenge of this transition to digital could be that of the competence of trainers and the transmission of knowledge (theoretical knowledge, but also and above all, know-how – techniques, professional gestures, practice, behaviour, quality, values).

Some of these elements, already difficult to transmit in a face-to-face environment, are even more so in distance or hybrid teaching and require much more involvement and pedagogy from the trainers. Hence the need to train trainers and any other person involved in the transmission process beforehand.

Pathway 2: Update trainers’ skills

The quality and relevance of any professional training is directly related to the professional competence of the trainers.

In the case of vocational training, most of the courses offered are taught by teaching teams from the trade. This situation responds to the logic of transmitting techniques specific to each profession, which would otherwise be difficult to share. Nevertheless, this empirical knowledge, acquired thanks to years of experience in the field, tends to become fixed in time. The risk being that once transposed onto the job market, the skills transmitted to students turn out to be obsolete. Consequently, it is essential to constantly renew the skills of trainers.

The training of managers and middle-managers is also an essential aspect to take into account. In the age of digital transformation. The success of a new development strategy depends on the ability of all employees to adopt it. They contribute fully to the internal transformation of the company and thus participate in the process of skills transfer.

IMGH Focus

The GIZ training, which the IMGH team attended, is based on the logic of alternating practice and theory, which allows the knowledge acquired to be updated and transferred directly to the workplace thanks to a point of view and experience from outside the organization.

According to Augustine Bro, founder of IMGH, this training has enabled her entire team to be more aware of the changes taking place in the professional market and to adapt their training offers in the long term.

Pathway 3: Capacity building through the co-development method

Finally, there can be a more collective approach to the new problems linked to the transformation of professions. Updating skills and knowledge to adapt to the demands of the job market is a necessity, and being in contact with other professionals would be an effective way to overcome one’s own shortcomings and acquire new knowledge.

A professional co-development group is a development approach for people who believe they can learn from each other to improve their practice. Individual and group reflection is facilitated through a structured consultation exercise that focuses on issues currently experienced by participant[5].

Thus the co-development method makes it possible to directly approach the practical side of a job, or of a task to be carried out, in a concerted manner. In contrast to a normative approach that only offers a single point of view, co-development, through the plurality of contributions, increases the development perspectives tenfold. This approach encourages everyone to consider a situation from a different and complementary angle, to think much deeper and to adapt new and more productive solutions.

IMGH Focus

“The adoption of the co-development method has brought new life to our organization. A new and very positive dynamic has taken hold and everyone is now voluntarily contributing to it, whether it be in terms of training, management, or governance. For example, those who are more comfortable with computers do not hesitate to give a helping hand to their colleagues in difficulty, and those who are struggling with other issues do not hesitate to ask for advice or help. So far, this method has been nothing but beneficial, both in terms of accounting and the work atmosphere” – Augustine Bro

In summary

The mismatch between existing training programs and the needs of an ever-changing labor market hinders the economic development of African countries. Opportunities exist and are being created, but the continent is still struggling to provide a skilled and employable workforce.

Vocational training actors, such as IMGH in Côte d’Ivoire, need to offer up-to-date and relevant content. We have mentioned here some of the practices implemented by IMGH since the Covid-19 crisis and the GIZ training (digitizing its training offer, strengthening the skills of trainers and teams…), but many other ideas can still be formulated to bring relevant and quality vocational training to African youth!

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[1] http://www.iiep.unesco.org/fr/en-afrique-la-transformation-de-la-formation-professionnelle-est-en-marche-13763

[2] Jean-Michel SEVERINO, RFI 20/01/19 https://www.rfi.fr/fr/emission/20190121-afrique-manque-emplois-qualifies-investir-formation

[3] En se référant à la définition donnée par l’Organisation internationale du travail (OIT), l’employabilité est « l’aptitude de chacun à trouver et conserver un emploi, à progresser au travail et à s’adapter au changement tout au long de la vie professionnelle »

[4] https://www.entreprenanteafrique.com/les-ecoles-africaines-au-temps-du-covid-19/#_ftn6

[5] Adrien PAYETTE, Claude CHAMPAGNE, PUQ, 1997 ( https://www.puq.ca/catalogue/livres/groupe-codeveloppement-professionnel-573.html )

By : Tsiky Rahagalala

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Understanding the tech ecosystem in Francophone Africa

For several years now, the growth of the African continent has largely relied on the growth of the French-speaking countries. According to the World Bank’s World Economic Outlook report, the…

For several years now, the growth of the African continent has largely relied on the growth of the French-speaking countries. According to the World Bank’s World Economic Outlook report, the economic growth rate of French-speaking African countries was 4.9% over the period 2012-2018, compared to 2.9% for the rest of the continent.

Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal and Guinea, with their young and rapidly growing populations, are among the fastest growing economies in Africa. Francophone Africa is also one of the youngest sub-regions in the world, with an average age of 15 years in Niger, for example. In parallel with these economic and demographic developments, the penetration rate of mobile phones, which is still lower than that of English-speaking countries, is increasing.

In this rapidly changing environment, what are the challenges for the technological ecosystem of French-speaking Africa?

Every year the investment group Seedstars produces an Index to measure the quality, potential and maturity of technological ecosystems in the 75 emerging markets in which it operates, as well as a platform to identify and train entrepreneurs in emerging countries. Three pillars are analyzed: opportunities, environment, and culture.

Culture: mindset and community

The third pillar of the Index, culture, is often the most difficult to define. It takes into account criteria such as the density of entrepreneurs, the number of events related to entrepreneurship, the presence of start-ups in the media, the collaboration between the actors of the ecosystem and the number of success stories….

While there are significant differences between all countries in the region, the Index generally gives a low rating to the entrepreneurial culture of French-speaking countries.

“Ivorian students are more attracted to jobs in the civil service and large companies. Entrepreneurship ranks 3rd in their career choice” – Mohamed Aly Bakayoko, Founder of Unikjob in Côte d’Ivoire

The good news is that significant progress is ongoing.

The spirit of creativity and rebellion, which are necessary ingredients for any technological ecosystem, are present in French-speaking Africa.

We often hear about the lack of successful entrepreneurs in the region, but several startups have already proven that French-speaking countries can create innovative and high-growth models. To quote a few exemples: In Senegal, Coin Afrique has raised €2.5 million in 2018 and has more than 400,000 active monthly users, Intouch has raised about €10 million in 2017 and developed its activities in 7 countries.

An environment that is becoming more business-friendly?

Although the business climate is not considered ideal, some countries such as Côte d’Ivoire (moving from 167^th in 2012 to 122^nd in 2019 in the World Bank’s Doing Business ranking) or Benin (from 175^th to 153^rd in 2019) have made decisive progress.

Several governments are trying to address the challenges faced by entrepreneurs. For example, the Ivorian government has developed a National Plan to support ICTs, in order to simplify the creation of technology companies (by 2020). In Senegal, a $50 million start-up fund, the DER, aims to catalyze entrepreneurship throughout the country. This initiative is intended to be a real tool for the economic empowerment of women and youth. The fund will provide funding, training and technical assistance to its targets.

Dynamic ecosystems: training and mentoring programs

The number of innovators seems to be increasing considerably. In still unstructured ecosystems such as Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo, more and more ambitious actors are emerging. For example, Ingenious City, an incubation platform launched in May 2018 in Kinshasa, is doing a lot of work to promote entrepreneurship and provide appropriate content.

It is interesting to note the growing link with European ecosystems, particularly in France, through programmes such as Afric’Innov, a community of incubators launched by the French Development Agency. In addition, important international and pan-African initiatives are taking root in French-speaking countries, building bridges with English-speaking or Portuguese-speaking countries (for example, MEST, Impact Hub, Orange Corners or Seedstars).

An initiative such as Afrique Excelle, supported by the World Bank, focuses specifically on French-speaking countries, and supports some of the best digital companies in French-speaking Africa. This program will be mainly in French. Indeed, language itself is often cited as a barrier, as most of the online content available to train entrepreneurs is in English.

Investments to be closely monitored

In its latest 2019 report, Partech confirms Senegal’s position as the market leader in French-speaking Africa, with its $22 million raised in four deals. However, the French-speaking African market stagnated, with $54.3 million raised, a similar increase to the previous year’s results.

Some positive signals are to be noted: investors such as Partech and ODV have decided to set up in French-speaking countries, which brings them closer to these ecosystems. Africinvest, a private equity fund with several offices in French-speaking African countries, has announced the creation of a venture capital fund for startups in Africa. Similarly, Seedstars, which has a hub in Abidjan, has just announced the launch of its $100 million fund for African start-ups.

The Francophone African Investors Summit held at the end of March in Bamako attracted several hundred participants, including investors, politicians, support structures and entrepreneurs, strengthening the positive dynamics of the ecosystem.

In conclusion

Francophone African countries are definitely emerging as countries to be considered in the technology sector, whether as entrepreneurs to launch their projects or as investors to support this promising ecosystem.

By : Dauchez Fanny

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