Message from the Executive Director of CAFOR, Lawalley Cole, for September 2018 – CAFOR proposed study project.

The Coalition on Media and Education for Development Africa Forum (CAFOR) and its affiliated members are working to promote a shared understanding of the issues in educational reform for youth development and youth employment in Africa. Through its networks, members are committed to sharing new knowledge generated in educational reform for youths in sub-Saharan Africa. At present, there are many issues that CAFOR is reflecting on as it evolves. These include better research, information sharing, mobilizing supporters, informing the public, advocate on youth issues for the economic and social development of the African continent, and coordinate with stronger forces for effectiveness at the field level. In the coming weeks before the end of the year, CAFOR will be soliciting the participation in its activities not only its members but also will strive to involve a host of other actors and participants. These may include students, teachers, parents, community members, educational professionals, decision-makers, and administrators who implement programmes at various levels, and above all media people who provide and transmit information.

Over the next couple of weeks up to the end of the year, CAFOR will be engaging a sizeable audience in some preliminary surveys that will provide some baseline information on the scale and scope to which young people are participating in media activities in Africa. We will begin with young people’s participation of the range and intensity of the use of social media and how effective this can be to promote youth understanding of developmental issues on the continent. This will include how young people are faring in the area of communication with the use of social media like Twitter, WhatsApp, Instagram, Snap Chat, Facebook and YouTube. How young Africans can learn from social media to empower themselves for productive work will be a significant area of focus.  In its conclusions, this survey will attempt to link its results with that of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as well as the related African Union’s Continental Education Strategy for Africa (CESA) 2016-2025).

As these have defined global development ambitions with CESA, in particular, focusing on Africa’s education ambitions which we align to Africa’s agenda 2063,  a 50-year blueprint for transforming Africa’s socioeconomic development. Hopefully, the results of this survey will yield exciting results that will provide us all with a new learning experience that will help us advance our global and continental agendas. These global and continental policy agendas are expected to be integrated into the country level developmental and sectorial strategies depending on the needs, priorities and context of each country.