Early in April, IUGB and the IUGB Foundation were invited to participate in the Mo Ibrahim Foundation Governance Week in Abidjan. It is an annual conversation with a different theme each year. On this occasion the theme was Africa’s youth job migration. Our students were part of the Now Generation conversation and showed initiative and purpose in their participation.
I believe the issue of jobs, education and entrepreneurship is the most pressing issue of the next decade for the African continent. The median age in Africa is 19.4 years while the median age in Europe and South America is over 30 years. The African youth will be searching for professional advancement far and wide and they will go wherever they see opportunities. At IUGB we are preparing our students for the world of business and STEM to support the development of Cote d’Ivoire and Africa.
So guess where our students are working or interning in Cote d’Ivoire these days? Here is a short list: Cargill, Guarantee Trust bank (GT bank), Vivo Energy, Orange Cote d’Ivoire, Orabank, SUD Consult, Cristal Credit International and World Cocoa Foundation.