The Promise of Youth

Africa’s health and social problems are numerous. Poor life expectancy, poor health in general and disastrous economic performance are a few of the reasons why having being born African leads to a very challenging life. There is, however, perhaps a more positive view of African demographics.

The World Bank’s recent World Development Report 2007 (found here) has suggested that younger populations, such as Uganda, have a “demographic window of opportunity“. That is, the size of the working-age generation is significantly larger compared to global averages than other more dependent age groups. In contrast, Western European Nations, particularly Italy, have an increasing pensions bill and a reducing working-age population. If Africa can harness that potential advantage and the rest of the world provides equal access to markets requiring labour-intensive products (primarily, agricultural), the future for Africa may be more positive. The European Union has a moral duty to reform the Common Agricultural Policy now.