Presentación del libro "La juventud en África, impulsora del cambio"

The Embassy of Spain in Nigeria has the pleasure to invite you to a joint event with Casa África and YOUPEDA Africa, to present the book Youth in Africa, Agents of Change

This book shows that it is possible for youth to live and do everything that society expects of its members regardless of age and gender. It is an inspirational compendium that gives invaluable insights into the thinking of young people, their aspirations, how they see the world, and records their contributions with amazing familiarity for anyone in the continent.

It addresses today’s challenges and exposes without lambasting the policy failures and leadership inadequacies in a subtle convivial manner, which makes it a great beginning point for policymakers to think about their policies in a much clearer and sustainable way.

After all, nobody in Africa wants to lose out as soon as they grow too old to be termed ‘youth’ and therefore suddenly cannot access services because they are no longer youth when they become a certain age, without considering the cultural and social context.

The presentation of this book will be the 26th November 2019 at 9.30am (prompt) at the residence of the Ambassador of Spain (55, Mississippi St., Maitama, Abuja). RSVP: emb.abuja@maec.es. Dress code: Smart casual

Authors confirmed to be present are:

1. Ukinebo Dare
2. Kennedy Zaro Barsisa
3. Onyekachi Ugwu

Kennedy Zaro Barsisa is Nigerian, staff of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), an intergovernmental regional, economic community organization established to foster cooperation, integration and development in the West African region. He currently works as Head of Division - Youth, Sports and Employment of the Department of Social Affairs and Gender, at the ECOWAS Commission in Abuja, Nigeria. He holds a Master of Communication Arts (MCA) Degree from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria (1988), and a B.A. in Theatre Arts from the University of Jos, Nigeria (1982). Before joining ECOWAS, Mr. Barsisa worked with Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) as Senior Television Producer, with the National Board for Community Banks (NBCB) as Chief Corporate Affairs Officer and the Nigerian Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD) as Head of the Consultancy Services Unit. Mr. Barsisa is a seasoned expert in international development and has contributed immensely to policy and programme development and implementation in ECOWAS. He is one of the pioneer staff of the institution who contributed to the development of Gender, Youth, Sports, Employment and Labour sectors - both in programme and policy.

Ukinebo Dare SSA to the Edo State Governor on Skills development and Job creation. Ukinebo currently serves as the Senior Special Adviser to the Edo State Governor on Skill development and Job creation. She oversees the Edojobs initiative with a mandate to create 200,000 jobs by 2020.
With an Msc. in Management from the University of Bradford and a Computer Science degree from Benson Idahosa University, she started her career in Oando Plc working in the Information Technology department. Her passion for people development led her to change her career path in 2010 and she set up Poise Graduate Finishing Academy (PGFA). PGFA achieved an 87% employment rate of its graduate and was endorsed by the National Universities Commission and multiple reputable employers in Nigeria.

Onyekachukwu Nnaemezie Ugwu has carried out top notch researches with organisations and networks such as Peace Direct UK, United Network of Young (UNOY) Peacebuilders, Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA), UN Women, in the areas of peacebuilding, violent extremism, atrocity prevention, youth, human right and health advocacy. Currently, he is supporting the gender and social inclusion advisory at Search for Common Grounds (SFCG) ensuring that peacebuilding and violent extremism targeted projects and activities are gender and diversity aware. Onyekachukwu has also honed his research skills in academic paper writing on border security management, violent extremism gender, peacebuilding. In recognition of his works, he was selected and participated in the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI) for West Africa and the Regional Youth Summit for Countering Violent Extremism (as UNOY representative). He is also an alumni of the United Nations Alliance for Civilization (UNAOC) Young Peacebuilders in West Africa Programme and the Open Society Foundations human rights and drug policy. He supported the AYHD team in its contributions to the lobbies that culminated in the adoption of the UNSCR 2250 and the Amman declaration on Youth, Peace and Security and he is member of the African Youth Advocates Team (A-YAT) where he has contributed to researches policy brief developments.