Seville, Spain on Wednesday, July 2nd, 2025:
Speech by His Excellency Ambassador Dr. Teeko Tozay Yorlay, Sr, as Honorary Guest Speaker at the United Nations’ Fourth Financing for Development (FFD4) Side Event on the Theme: “Youth-Driven Capital: Unlocking Innovative Financing for Africa’s Green and Digital Future” in Seville, Spain, on July 2, 2025
Distinguished Delegates and Attendees, Youth Leaders, Policymakers, Development Partners, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Let me preface my statement by saying how truly honored and humble I am to be here with you today. Being invited to speak at this high-level event, during the United Nations’ Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development, is not just a professional moment for me, it’s personal.
I want to thank the Economic and Trade Cooperation of African Youth for organizing this vital conversation and for choosing such a powerful theme: “Youth-Driven Capital: Unlocking Innovative Financing for Africa’s Green and Digital Future.”
As we gather here in the historic and beautiful city of Seville, let’s remember, this is not just another policy meeting. We are here to build real solutions. We are here to commit. And we are here to energize a movement that sees Africa’s youth not as recipients of charity, but as leaders, creators, and problem-solvers.
Africa’s Youth: More Than a Statistic
Our continent, Africa, has been identified as the fastest growing with the youngest population of all continents in the world. That’s true, as even the United Nations has indicated that: “Africa has the youngest population in the world, with 70% of sub-Saharan Africa under the age of 30.” But this isn’t just a number we toss around at conferences and for research purposes. It’s our greatest asset, if we choose to act on it in meaningful ways.
For that to happen, we must break down the barriers that keep our youth from thriving: the lack of access to finance, limited job opportunities, digital gaps, and the ever-growing threat of climate change compounded by substance abuse.
Today, we have converged miles away from our continent to talk about the segment of our population that matters the most but is faced with challenges that require urgent attention. In 2023, 53 million youth in sub-Saharan Africa were not in employment, education or training (NEET), meaning that more than 1 in 5 youth (21.9 per cent) in the region were in NEET status. According to International Labor Organization’s 2024 report on Global Employment Trends for Youth, “the lack of productive and decent jobs remains the largest labor market challenge for young people in Sub-Saharan Africa.” Young females have been identified as facing major additional stumbling blocks when seeking to enter the labor market. With 8.9 million of them living in close proximity to conflicts, the young people in sub-Saharan Africa have been significantly impacted by political instability and conflict. Amid these challenges, agriculture has been identified as the primary source of employment for young workers in sub-Saharan Africa and accounts for 60 per cent in 2021.
Youth potential isn’t just about the future; it’s about power that exists right now. We are talking about policy potential. Investment potential. Innovation potential.
From my Own Path: Real Stories of Youth in Action
Let me tell you why I believe this so deeply.
During my work As First Deputy Speaker of the Mano River Union Youth Parliament Liberia Chapter, and with USAID DAI’s support, I led an engagement that raised over $65,000 and expanded the Mano River Union Youth Parliament. What started with four members grew to include 30 dynamic young voices across the fifteen political subdivisions of Liberia. It wasn’t just about numbers. It was about giving more young people a real place at the policy table, where decisions are made, and change begins.
With financial support from ACDI/VOCA, I rallied my colleagues, and we worked on our Youth in Agriculture Projects in two of counties: Nimba and Bong. We went beyond handing out tools and seeds to helping young farmers believe in themselves. We helped them see farming not as a last resort, but as a smart, entrepreneurial choice and a career with dignity. With this model adopted and replicated across our continent, agriculture would not only remain a major source of income for African youth but also the major source of wealth of young Africans.
And in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), while serving with the United Nations Organizations Stabilization Mission, I worked with communities, especially in eastern DRC, to design peacebuilding projects led by youth and civil society. What we saw was powerful: better dialogue, stronger civic engagement, and communities healing or social cohesion that contributed to paving the way for the communities to actualize their potentials in various areas.
All of this has taught me one simple truth: When young people are trusted, supported, and funded, they don’t just participate in change. They lead it passionately.
From Ideas to Action: Why Policy Matters
Our convergence here has been driven by many factors, one of which is the threat or challenges the fulfillment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) face for which discussions are being held to reform international financial architecture (s) amid the projection that by 2030 we expect 6.4 trillion financing gap as it relates to the implementation of the SDG’s. With this scaring gap, how can SDG 8 be fulfilled in achieving “sustained economic growth and high levels of economic productivity for the creation of well-paid quality jobs?”
That’s why today’s conversation must go beyond good intentions. We need real action, grounded in smart policies that address the challenges facing the young people of the world poorest continent that has been left behind for years and remains behind even today as phraseology “leave no one behind” is being globally trumpeted and parroted.
It is important to emphasize that traditional financing models have fallen short of meeting Africa’s development needs, leaving billions in annual climate financing gaps and limited access to capital for startups. Investments in sustainable agriculture, critical minerals, and renewable energy can position youth as leaders in Africa’s green and digital future. Africa can leverage the digital revolution to empower its youth to create solutions like mobile apps for financial inclusion and inclusive communication, which will enhance access to education, healthcare, and markets. Empowering youth with science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and digital skills is essential to achieving digital transformation in Africa.
The African Union’s call for a Decade of Accelerated Action (2025-2035) is a genuine realization that the African Continent, especially Sub-saharan Africa, needs to accelerate youth skills development which will end learning poverty and foster innovation.
I fully support the Youth Financing Framework and the Sevilla Accord on Youth Financing for Development. These are not just documents, they are tools that can change lives. They can help us move money, training, and resources into the hands of young people who are ready to build, from tech entrepreneurs in the cities to climate champions in the villages.
And I call on the African Union and its partners to not let these efforts become one-time projects. Let’s make them lasting policies. Let’s build systems, not just programs.
While I appreciate the International Labor Organization (ILO) and African Union (AU) in developing a joint youth employment strategy for Africa, I use this opportunity to call on them to evolve and operationalize the necessary tactics that ensure that “economic solutions for economic problems” are timeously found for the young people of our beloved Africa. Our continent and its leaders should not only verbalize but remain committed to ensuring that the young people are brought in and they maintain their places in the driver’s seat of policymaking and implementation, while working tirelessly to prioritize the decisive creation of decent jobs and increasing youth employment and empowerment.
Unlocking Capital: Looking Beyond Money
When we talk about youth financing, we need to look beyond the numbers in a budget.
We must:
- Invest in training that teaches young people how to innovate, whether it’s in business, tech, or climate solutions.
- Change rules and laws so it’s easier for youth, especially young women and those in rural areas, to get loans and start ventures.
- Build partnerships between governments and businesses that bring not just money, but also mentorship and new ideas.
- And we must create decentralized systems that respect and respond to local needs and opportunities.
It’s time we think of “capital” not just as cash, but as courage, trust, and access to opportunity.
To Africa’s Youth: A Personal Message
To the young people here and across Africa, let me speak to you directly.
You are not waiting to become leaders, you already are. Whether you’re building an app, starting a community garden, launching a climate campaign, or leading a protest, you are already shaping the future.
You don’t need pity. You need systems that help you grow.
You must demand better from us, your leaders, but also hold yourselves to high standards.
Push for funding, but also for fair frameworks not compromising integrity, which should be your chief guiding principle.
Raise your voice and build platforms that lift others, too.
Closing: The Future is Already Here
As we prepare to leave Seville, let’s carry more than inspiration with us. Let’s carry action plans, partnerships, and clear goals. Most importantly, let’s commit to and operationalize the action plans and leverage the partnerships and achieve our goals.
Let’s imagine and then make real, a future where a young person in Uganda with a climate solution, or in Nigeria with a fintech idea, or in Liberia with a sustainable farm, can get what they need to succeed.
This isn’t just about unlocking capital. It’s about unlocking hope, fairness, and transformation.
Let’s dare to fund the future because the future is already here. And it’s young. It’s African. It’s green. It’s digital. And it’s waiting for us to believe in it.
May this gathering lead to bold actions and real change and not remain mere talks.
If you have never known before, please know this: you are the ones you have been waiting for to make African young people occupy and maintain an enviable place within the family of young people globally.
Please note and take very, very seriously that the foundation you wish would have been laid for you to inherit must be laid by you to bequeath to the future African generation. Now is the time to lay it!
May God bless us all and save our continent!
Thank you.