Youth confident to speak up but struggle to turn voices into policy action, survey finds

Nearly nine in 10 young Africans say they are confident speaking up about issues they care about, yet only about half have taken part in an advocacy activity, pointing to a gap between young people’s willingness to speak and their ability to influence decisions.

A new study by The ONE Campaign found that 89 per cent of young people surveyed felt confident speaking up on issues that mattered to them, while 53 per cent had ever participated in an advocacy activity.

The findings are based on a survey of 482 young people aged 14 to 35 in Kenya, Senegal, Togo, Ghana, Tanzania and Zambia between March and June this year.

The study suggests that the challenge may not simply be a lack of interest among young people in public issues, but limited knowledge of how to turn their concerns into sustained advocacy and engagement with decision-makers.

While 64 per cent of respondents understood advocacy as speaking up to influence decisions, policies or systems, they were less familiar with some of the practical activities involved.

Respondents correctly identified an average of 2.5 out of five activities presented to them as forms of advocacy.

Starting campaigns or organisations was recognised by 72 per cent as advocacy, while 60 per cent identified talking to friends about issues and 48 per cent identified participation in community meetings.

However, only 40 per cent identified writing to decision-makers as advocacy, while 30 per cent recognised sharing information and data as an advocacy activity.

The findings point to a distinction between being willing to speak about an issue and knowing how to engage the institutions and people responsible for making decisions about it.

This is particularly significant as young people identified issues with direct effects on their lives as their main concerns. Unemployment ranked first, followed by education, healthcare and the exclusion of young people from decision-making.

The survey also found that young people are already using digital platforms to learn and access information, suggesting that the challenge is not necessarily a lack of interest in learning.

YouTube was used for learning by 69 per cent of respondents, followed by TikTok at 58 per cent, WhatsApp at 57 per cent and ChatGPT and similar artificial intelligence tools at 57 per cent.

However, 61 per cent identified internet connectivity as their biggest barrier to online learning.

The findings come as The ONE Campaign launches ONE Academy, a pan-African learning platform that will equip young people with practical skills in advocacy, including understanding policy processes, identifying decision-makers, building evidence-based cases and mobilising support for issues they want addressed.

The platform is initially targeting Kenya and Senegal, with its first course focusing on foundational learning and helping young advocates understand how to make the case for policies, investment and implementation in education.

Ambassador Mark Green, President of The ONE Campaign, said knowledge and persistence were important in ensuring progress on development issues.

“Stronger systems matter, better policies matter and greater investment matters, but progress only lasts when there are people with knowledge, confidence and the persistence to carry it forward,” Green said.

Serah Makka, Executive Director for Africa at The ONE Campaign, said the findings showed that young people already had the desire to participate but needed practical pathways to turn that interest into action.

“Africa’s young people do not lack ideas, ambition or a desire to shape the future,” she said.

The Academy is expected to combine online learning with opportunities for young people to apply the skills they acquire and connect with other advocates and practitioners.

The launch also builds on existing efforts by ONE to train young people in advocacy. Its ONE Champions programme, for example, gives young activists skills in public speaking, writing, networking and advocacy while connecting them with decision-makers.

The new findings therefore shift attention from whether young people are interested in public affairs to whether they have practical and accessible routes to participate.

The study found that 83 per cent of respondents wanted to learn how to create change in their communities, further suggesting that there is demand for opportunities to build advocacy skills.

For Kenya, where young people form a significant part of the population and are directly affected by decisions on employment, education, healthcare and other public services, the findings raise questions about how young people can move beyond expressing concerns to participating in the processes through which policies are developed and implemented.

The survey provides a baseline for ONE Academy, with the organisation saying the findings will be used to shape its courses and measure future outcomes.

The wider question, however, extends beyond the new platform of whether governments, civil society organisations and other institutions can create meaningful channels through which young people can use their knowledge and confidence to participate in decisions affecting their lives.