Evidence-based policy action on youth development in Africa

The objective of the project is to strengthen capacities of governments, scholars and civil society as well as youth and youth-led organizations in select African countries for evidence-based formulation, monitoring and evaluation of policies and programs on youth. The project will conduct a review of youth-policy related data in three African countries followed by national workshops to identify youth policy priority areas as well as data gaps based on the empirical evidence gathered. Further, the project will, in consultation with national, regional and global experts, review existing national, regional (such as the African Youth Charter (AYC) and the African Youth Decade Plan of Action) and global youth action plans and related indicators (such as the World Programme of Action on Youth (WPAY) as well as the recently adopted Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and targets and indicators), to identify suitable indicators for mainstreaming and monitoring the implementation of national, regional and global youth action plans and policies. The interventions will further develop recommendations on the application of these indicators for national youth policy formulation, monitoring and implementation and provide support to related capacity building. The project also aims to raise awareness on the use of youth indicators and support their dissemination to local youth policy makers in order to strengthen youth civic engagement at the local level. Critical to the success of the project is the active and full inclusion and participation of all relevant stakeholders, particularly youth and youth-led organizations in all steps towards the identification of relevant indicators and their application in the formulation, monitoring and implementation of more inclusive policies that are responsive to the needs and priorities of youth in Africa. Finally, the project will convene a regional workshop for project beneficiaries and additional countries as well as regional intergovernmental bodies, civil society, youth-led organisations and academia to engage in a dialogue to share best practices and to agree on a set of recommendations on evidence-based policies on youth to be presented to a wider audience in sub-Saharan Africa.