Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games: African youth at the heart of democratic issues and international cooperation

The holding of the Youth Olympic Games (YOG) in Dakar is much more than a sporting event. It also represents an opportunity to reflect on the place of African youth in public policy, democracy, and international relations.

It is with this in mind that Expertise France, in partnership with the Foundation for Innovation for Democracy, organized the International Cooperation Meetings (RIC) for the first time in Dakar. The meeting, focused on the role of African youth, highlighted the challenges related to employment, education, civic participation, and youth representation in decision-making bodies. It also provided an opportunity to reflect on the role that youth should play in building democracy and developing the continent.

For Jérémie Pellet, Director General of Expertise France in Africa, the choice of Dakar and the Youth Olympic Games as a forum for discussion is not insignificant. According to him, it is about taking advantage of this unprecedented event on the continent to place young people at the heart of discussions on international cooperation and democracy. "The needs of these young people are very clear. They need future prospects, employment, and access to a safe, prosperous, and free life," he emphasized.

According to him, African institutions need to better integrate the aspirations of young people into their public policies. The goal is to no longer consider youth as a mere topic of discussion or a beneficiary of development programs, but as a full-fledged actor in the transformation of the continent.

With this in mind, Expertise France intends to strengthen its support across several strategic sectors, including entrepreneurship, digital technology, education, higher education, and research. The organization currently supports over 1,000 universities, research centers, and incubators in Africa.

Reconciling demography and democracy

For his part, the director of the Foundation for Innovation for Democracy (FIDEMO), Achille Mbembe, based in Johannesburg and operating in 36 African countries, stressed the importance of the demographic challenge that the continent will face in the coming decades.

Recalling that Africa is projected to become the continent with the youngest population in the world within 20 to 25 years, with approximately 42% of its population under 18 according to the aforementioned projections, he argued that this reality demands an ambitious political response. "These young people must find jobs, be educated, and have a say in decisions not only about the present but also about the future of our societies," he stated.

For him, this ambition necessarily involves better representation of young people and women in decision-making spaces, at the local, municipal and national levels.

He specifically advocated for the effective participation of young people in the bodies where public policies are defined and decided. It is no longer enough for them to be the beneficiaries of decisions made by public authorities. They must also take part in their development.

For an Africa-Europe partnership based on equality

Discussions also focused on the future of cooperation between African countries and the European Union. In an international context marked by political, economic, and geopolitical shifts, participants also emphasized the need to rethink international cooperation relations.

For Jérémie Pellet, current constraints make this exercise particularly demanding. However, cooperation remains essential to avoid a more fragmented and inward-looking world. "The choice is to continue writing this story, which is what it is, which has enormous potential, or not to do so and pave the way for a fractured world where everyone stays in their own bubble," he declared, emphasizing the urgency of addressing major global challenges, such as climate change and citizen participation.

Through this meeting, the Dakar Youth Olympic Games appear as a symbolic platform to remind everyone that youth should no longer be only at the center of speeches, but at the heart of international decisions and partnerships.