Accra, Ghana — July 26, 2025
A top African Union official has urged young Africans to take the lead in
rebuilding the continent through justice, unity, and inclusive governance.
The Director
of the Governance and Conflict Prevention Directorate in the AU’s Department of
Political Affairs, Peace and Security, Ms. Patience Z. Chiradza, while
delivering a keynote address at the opening of the Continental Youth
Consultations to the 13th High-Level Dialogue in Accra, said reparations is
“more than symbolic”.
According to
Ms. Chiradza, Africa’s youth are not just the future but the present, with a
critical role in reimagining and transforming the continent.
“Reparations
are not only about compensation. They are about recognition, redress, and
reconstruction,” said Chiradza, linking the need for justice to Africa’s
historical traumas of slavery, colonialism, and systemic exploitation.
She
emphasized that youth must reclaim Africa’s narrative and institutional identity.
Chiradza
outlined key AU frameworks designed to empower youth, to include the African
Youth Charter (2006), the AGA-APSA Youth Engagement Strategy (2024–2030),
the AU Transitional Justice Policy (2019), and peacebuilding initiatives
like Youth for Peace and the Chairperson’s Youth Envoy.
“These frameworks are not ends in themselves.
They are tools for transformation,” she said, urging young people to actively
shape, challenge, and lead their implementation.
The Director
called for youth to leverage digital tools, activism, and creative expression
to influence policy and reshape public trust, adding that youth across Africa
and the diaspora have already been leading—from movements like Rhodes Must
Fall to digital campaigns and community organizing.
Chiradza
also highlighted the AU’s commitment to inclusive dialogue, noting that youth
input from the forum would directly inform the 13th High-Level Dialogue and
future AU initiatives under Agenda 2063.
She closed
with a call to honor both the memory of past generations and the responsibility
to future ones: “The baton is already in your hands… Let our answer be: We
resisted. We reimagined. We rebuilt. Together.”
The African
Union expressed gratitude to the Government of Ghana and key stakeholders,
including H.E. Mr. George Opare Addo, for their support in hosting the forum.
The event,
held in Accra, brought together youth leaders, policymakers, and partners from
across the continent, reinforcing the AU’s message: The Africa We Want
cannot be built without the youth we have.
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