Across eight major cities today in West and Central Africa, a new narrative for the sub-regions’ job creation and youth participation is being written.
Championed by the World Bank, the AFW Youth Forum 2026, themed “Youth Works. Africa Thrives,” is being held, bringing together hundreds of the region’s brightest minds to tackle the most pressing challenge of our time, which is sustainable job creation.
For the World Bank, the overall motive for this forum is to turn Africa’s huge potential into prosperity. This forum comes at a critical juncture in the sub-region’s history. Western and Central Africa is currently home to 196 million young people; however, a child born in the region today is estimated to reach only 38 percent of their productive potential.
This, the World Bank says, is due to gaps in education and workforce preparation
In view of this gap, the World Bank Group (WBG) is convening this forum to close that gap, moving beyond traditional development to a model where jobs are at the core and young people are the primary architects of their own economic future.
The Forum
According to the information gathered by The High Street Journal, the National Dialogues to Regional Action event is designed to be highly interactive, rejecting traditional presentations in favor of youth-centered design.
The forum is structured in two parts:
National Youth Dialogues: Each participating country office, including Cote d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Ghana, Guinea, Niger, Nigeria, and Senegal, is hosting in-person sessions focused on local priorities.
For instance, in Ghana, the focus is on Entrepreneurship and Youth-Led Innovation, while in Niger, the youth are diving into Artificial Intelligence and Digital Skills.
Regional Plenary Session: Later today, these national hubs will converge virtually to share their findings with WBG leadership, including Vice President Ousmane Diagana, to identify collective pathways for the entire region.
The Participants
The forum has gathered a diverse group of 300 youth leaders across the region, including young entrepreneurs, students, activists, and community influencers.
They are joined by government ministers, private sector leaders, specifically IFC clients, and World Bank experts. A major highlight of the day is the “Passing the Baton” fireside chat, where local champions share their journeys from youth to professional success, offering a roadmap for the next generation.
The Goal
The end goal is not just talk, but actionable recommendations. Participants are currently engaged in an Innovation Lab Challenge, answering the fundamental question: “How can young Africans leverage innovation to contribute to job creation?”
These solutions will be consolidated into a post-forum synthesis report, co-authored by youth, which will serve as the regional contribution to the World Bank’s global youth agenda.
The Bottomline
As the dialogues take place today, it is anticipated that this forum will become the foundation for sustained engagement, ensuring that the voices heard in these rooms will result in actionable solutions to tackle the pressing challenges of the youth in West and Central Africa.
