Two more chapters of PACT to be formally established at ATF2018

By
Belinda Ayamgha, GNA

Accra, June 22, GNA –
The Pan-African Coalition for Transformation (PACT) is set to establish two
more chapters in Agriculture and Skills Development and Youth Training at the
second Africa Transformation Forum (ATF2018) in Accra.

The formal
establishment of the two additional chapters, as an outcome of the ATF2018, is
a reflection of the importance of the issues in driving transformation across
the Africa continent.

It will bring the
functioning PACT chapters to five, including extractives, resource mobilisation
and management and light manufacturing.

According to Dr.
Kingsley Y. Amoako, Founder and President of Africa Centre for Economic Transformation
(ACET), who spoke at the opening of the Forum in Accra on Wednesday, the PACT
was conceived and established at the first AFT in Kigali Rwanda, from the
concept that African countries could accomplish more by working together than
by working apart.

He said the PACT
agriculture chapter, will use the 2017 African Transformation Report, produced
by ACET, which focused exclusively on agriculture and how to leverage it to
transform as the starting point.

He explained that
the analytical work on the chapter had been done and the ATF2018 was for
countries to share experiences and agree on how each country could move
forward.

Speaking to the GNA,
he said while investments in agriculture remained low in Ghana and other
countries, agriculture remained the most dominant sector in many African
countries, contributing the most to GDP, as well as in terms of employment.

“It is still an
important sector, and there are still a lot of challenges, and modernising
agriculture is particularly important,” he said.

He explained that
averagely, Africa had an ageing workforce in agriculture age with most farmers
being about 60 years, thus the challenge was to ensure that agriculture became
attractive for young people.

To do this, there
was the need for input supply, mechanisation, as well as expansion in sizes of
farmland to allow the young people to make a decent living in agriculture.

On the Skills Development and Youth Training
chapter, Dr Amoako said the employment challenge facing Africa was huge, with
most youth unemployed, while the youth population continued to bulge, with
Africa predicted to have the largest youth population in the world by 2050.

“At the same time,
the nature of work is also changing; there’s robotics, there’s mechanisation,
there’s artificial intelligence…so the education system is important.

“We need to ensure
that more students get science, technical, engineering and mathematics
education. We need to ensure they have the right skills for what employers
want,” he stated.

He also stressed the
need for Technical, Vocational Education and Training to be an integral part of
Africa’s education system.

He noted that ACET and the government of
Ghana had held a forum a few months ago to bring stakeholders together to
identify clear and deliverable policy recommendations and intended to have
similar events in other countries.

He said the next
phase of the chapter would be underpinned by research and analysis on
education, skills and the future of work in Africa conducted by ACET on behalf
of the Mastercard Foundation and other institutions.

“ACET realises that
its work cannot be done alone, nor should it,” and commended ACET’s partner
institutions and partners for their collaboration in pushing progress with the
PACT.

The two-day ATF2018,
on the theme “Dialogue for Action”, co-hosted by the African Centre for
Economic Transformation (ACET) and the Government of Ghana provides an
opportunity for the private sector, policymakers and development to engage each
other on how best to advance the economic transformation of Africa,
particularly in those areas highlighted by the Pan-Africa Coalition for
Transformation (PACT).

The PACT is a
peer-peer learning platform organised in chapters around key issues that drive
economic transformation which was formed at the first African Transformation
Forum held in Kigali Rwanda. PACT chapters to be covered at the ATF2018 are:
Resource Mobilisation and Management, Agriculture, Skills Development and Youth
Training, Extractives and Light Manufacturing.

GNA

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