#YourVoiceYourFuture TURNING CHALLENGES INTO SOLUTIONS FINAL REPORT CLIMATE CHANGE AND THE GREEN TRANSITION 1 #YOURVOICEYOURFUTURE Table of Contents 1. Acknowledgements ....................................................................................................................................................... p. 3 2. Executive summary ....................................................................................................................................................... p. 4 3. Introduction: #YourVoiceYourFuture ........................................................................................................................... p. 6 4. The Polls: How the information was gathered .............................................................................................................. p. 8 5. Poll results and recommendations ...............................................................................................................................p. 10 5.1. Climate change and the green transition .........................................................................................................p. 10 5.2. Digital transformation and social infrastructure .............................................................................................. p. 17 5.3. Education, skills and decent jobs ..................................................................................................................... p. 23 5.4. Governance, peace and security ......................................................................................................................p. 30 6. U-Report ambassadors ................................................................................................................................................ p. 36 7. Conclusions ................................................................................................................................................................. p. 37 8. About African Union, European Union and UNICEF ...............................................................................................p. 38 1. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Thank you! This publication was developed by the UNICEF Brussels Office and This report was made possible by the thousands of children and young U-Report Global team in collaboration with UNICEF’s Division of people across Africa and Europe who participated in the polls and actively Communication and Office of Innovation. It was produced with the engaged with UNICEF as U-Reporters. They helped us better understand financial support of the European Union. The opinions expressed in your concerns and opinions. Thank you! this report are those of UNICEF and do not necessarily reflect the We greatly appreciate the work of the European Union and African Union views of the European Union. in developing the poll questions and report, together with African and European youth partners and U-Report ambassadors, to make sure we Conceptualization, project management and coordination: remained focused on the key issues affecting young people. Alexandra Makaroff, Ana Claudia Castanheira Rocha, Hira Hafeez- Ur-Rehman, Massimiliano Sani, Natalia Alonso Cano, Rebekka The poll would not have been possible without the support, implementation Opfermann, Ricardo Pires. and outreach provided by UNICEF country offices, regional offices and National Committees, in particular: Botswana, Bulgaria, Burkina Report writing and editing: Faso, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, Eswatini, France, Gambia, Lesotho, Malawi, Alexandra Makaroff, Hira Hafeez-Ur-Rehman Moldova, Mozambique, Nigeria, On the Move (Italy), Romania, Serbia, Sierra Leone, Zambia and Zimbabwe; and UNICEF Eastern and Southern Analysis: Africa office, UNICEF West and Central Africa office and UNICEF Christopher Brooks and Jacques Elie Bernard Europe and Central Asia office. Polling: The steering committees, implementing partners, and youth organizations Christopher Brooks, Hira Hafeez ur Rehman, Victoria Ndoh and which support U-Report in these countries also made invaluable U-Report offices globally contributions to the success of this initiative. Design and data visualizations: This report benefited from valuable inputs and support from Agata Sobiech, Ricardo Pires, Rebekka Perdereau and L’Union communication agency Kathrin Scholler and David Flynn, from the European Commission, DG DEVCO B1, Amanda Chukwudozie and David Amira from the African Union Commission, and Faith Chilupula from UNICEF. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 3 2. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The #YourVoiceYourFuture digital campaign is an initiative The Africa-Europe Youth Summit relates to the AU-EU launched by the African Union, European Union and UNICEF Head of States Summit and is an integral part of the Joint to hear directly from young people about their opinions on key Africa-EU Strategy. It brings together young people, youth topics affecting their future and relevant to the partnership organizations and diaspora youth platforms to present their between the two continents. views to European and African leaders on critical issues pertaining to youth on both continents. The youth summits #YourVoiceYourFuture aims to help children and young people aim to increase the participation of young people to influence in Europe and Africa raise their voices to inform policymaking, policy in African-European cooperation and reinforce key create interest around youth issues and bring youth and areas of relevance to young people in both regions through an decision makers closer on both continents. enhanced partnership. Between July and September 2020, some 450,000 children The voices of young people in this report provide a foundation and young people across Africa and Europe aged between 14 for a call to action for global, regional and national actors in and 35 responded to questions via the U-Report platform, a Africa and Europe. They are calling on decision makers to work messaging tool used by UNICEF to empower young people together to create better opportunities and a better future and gather their opinions. U-Report used SMS messages for every child and young person; to remove the barriers they and social media to conduct four polls on a range of topics face to supporting climate action; to build the digital skills they important to young people. Questions related to climate need to be shapers and creators of tomorrow; to access quality change and the green transition; digital transformation and education and decent jobs and to increase their participation social infrastructure; education, skills and decent jobs; and in decision making. governance, peace and security. The recommendations from young people in this report aim to inform the agenda of the Africa-Europe Youth Summit 2021. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 4 #YOURVOICEYOURFUTURE KEY RECOMMENDATIONS CLIMATE CHANGE AND THE GREEN TRANSITION EDUCATION, SKILLS AND DECENT JOBS 1 Create better disaster risk preparedness and management 1 Improve capacity development and mentorship opportunities systems for food security amid climate-related threats, primarily for young entrepreneurs; rainfalls and floods, heatwaves and drought, and water pollution; 2 Increase collaboration with the private sector and investors to 2 Invest in raising awareness for climate action and strengthen generate job opportunities for young people; capacity-building opportunities, youth engagement and mobilization; 3 Reimagine the education sector by expanding digital learning opportunities, revising school curricula and investing in research, 3 Create opportunities to gain skills and knowledge and innovation and teacher training. incorporate social entrepreneurship to promote climate action and environmental preservation. GOVERNANCE, PEACE AND SECURITY 1 Ensure access to online learning and alternative pathways for DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION AND SOCIAL quality education for those whose education was disrupted due INFRASTRUCTURE to conflict; 1 Create digital connectivity solutions so that young people can access electricity and the internet; 2 Improve access to political leaders and decision makers from community to national/international levels, as the majority of 2 Sensitize young people on internet safety and security, and how them want to be more involved in decision making processes; to counter disinformation; 3 Increase youth quotas in political offices, especially at local, 3 Improve internet accessibility, including creating digital skills state and national levels and create community engagement programmes for learning and education that will equip young mechanisms for involvement in governance. people with new skills and enable them to be more competitive in the job market. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 5 #YOURVOICEYOURFUTURE 3. INTRODUCTION: #YOURVOICEYOURFUTURE In 2021, African and European Heads of State and Government Youth voices from Europe and Africa, and the data gathered through will come together in the next AU-EU Summit to define their U-Report, will provide European and African policymakers important cooperation strategy approach with joint priorities and deliverables insights to shape the future of young people and communities, and for the relations and cooperation between the two continents. Voices help define the future partnership priorities between the EU and of young people, Europeans, Africans and diaspora, will be critical to Africa, including concrete, joint deliverables. shaping this agenda and ensuring the partnership reflects and meets their needs, aspirations and expectations. Children and young people