YOUTH UNEMPLOYMENT & POVERTY IN AFRICA
Unemployment in Cameroon and many places in Africa is just as apparent as day light. Youth unemployment is a cause for concern as the consequences on the society are potentially devastating. We believe that this problem lies in the failed economy, the lack of strong and sustainable institutions as well as the incoherence between school-acquired skills and work-requirement needs of the youth. Violent conflict plays a major role in unemployment / poor living standards and extremism / crime may become easier options for youth who are hit with the frustration of poverty and unemployment especially after many years of school.
Africa is ironically the richest and the poorest continent on earth: richest in terms of resources (natural and human) yet poorest in productivity and living standards. Our contention is that entrepreneurship / wealth creation in education should be equally important as literacy, if we must bridge this gap. We believe that with solution-centered creativity and innovation-based entrepreneurship, the young African may succeed in charting his way into prosperity for himself and his community. We also believe that through enterprise creation, growth and sustainability, young Africans can build for themselves their nations and their future generations a prosperous future. It is empirical that high priority, global attention be placed on the employment and wealth creation needs of the young African. To build the next generation of African youth leaders who will usher themselves and their communities into prosperity, a new thrush of inspiration for personal development, self-discovery and purpose-driven passion, will be the vehicle to move them from where they are to where they want to be.
WHO WE ARE
Strawacademy is a Not-For-Profit Organization founded in 2016 with 5 principal areas of focus:
- Inspiring African Youth towards Innovation-based Entrepreneurship
- Business Incubation and Development
- Entrepreneurship and Professional Business Training
- Content Production & Publishing to inspire Youth entrepreneurship
- Implementing Projects and Organizing Events to boost the entrepreneurship culture / ecosystem
Strawacademy, nicknamed ‘House of Inspiration’, is described as: An Enterprise Support Organization as well as A Business Incubator
The Headquarters of Strawacademy (SAc) is in Buea, Cameroon and its principal areas of operations is mainly Cameroon. SAc also partially operates through partnerships in 13 other African countries: Cameroon, Nigeria, South Sudan, South Africa, Togo, Burundi, Kenya, Uganda, Ghana, Zimbabwe, Egypt, Tanzania, Senegal and Morroco
VISION
To contribute to the prosperity of African Nations by fostering youth and economic empowerment, through youth entrepreneurship / wealth creation as well as upholding the entrepreneurial culture within communities and their entrepreneurship ecosystems.
Through self-discovery, personal development and inspiration towards entrepreneurship; we groom the young passion-driven entrepreneur who becomes the catalyst who takes an enterprise from creation through development into establishment / sustainability.
With evidence-based practices, standard operational systems as well as corporate competence, we help build strong for-profit institutions, create employment, empower the economy and contribute to sustainable development.
MISSION
Fostering economic and sustainable development by inspiring and directing the creation and development of feasible, sustainable, fundable and scalable for profit-ventures
RATIONALE
Africa has become the fastest growing continent in the world with over 2 billion people. Over 70% of African youth are either unemployed or underemployed. By 2050, Africa will be the youngest continent with the largest work force.
There will be an estimated 1 billion jobless youth in Africa by 2050
Action to alleviate African youth unemployment is an emergency and has to be given almost the same global attention and resources as disaster relief and epidemic disease control. Considering the devastating potentiality of youth unemployment such as high crime wave and violent extremism, an emergency plan must be considered to meet this globally challenge.
SOLUTION
We use a five-fold approach to solving this problem:
1. Inspiring young Africans for Opportunity Creation & the Development of Innovation-based Solutions for generational impact.
2. Creating and nurturing solution oriented startup ventures into scalable and sustainable enterprises
3. Developing, Capacities through training to improve Corporate Performance.
4. Developing, Producing and Publishing Creative Content to inspire young Africans into the development of innovation-based solutions for entrepreneurship.
5. Implementing projects and organizing events that foster the entrepreneurship culture and ecosystem.