On 4-5 June 2024, TrustAfrica, the Institute for Peace and Security Studies (IPPS), the African Youth Commission (AYC) and the Youth for Peace Program (YPP) of the African Union (AU) hosted a Pre-Tana 2024 Youth Consultation which took place in Dakar, Senegal. Under the theme: What’s Next? Aligning States and the African Youth, the meeting brought together regional and country youth representatives, representatives of the African Union (AU), African think tanks, academics and youth civil society organizations. 

The discussions of the two-day event were based on the implementation of the continental framework on Youth, Peace and Security (YPS) of the AU with its call for member states to develop YPS National Action Plans (NAPs). The participants took stock of how far African states had come in developing YPS NAPS since the YPS framework was adopted by the AU Peace and Security Council (AUPSC) and engaged in an important reflection of the progress and challenges in the implementation of the NAPs. Some of the key issues raised by participants revolved around the key assumptions behind the rationale of NAPs, and whether these were still relevant to the contemporary context within Africa? Other concerns centered on whether the development of NAPs resonates with community-based activists and groups who might not necessarily identify with the language of a NAP. 

In addition to discussing these challenges and the lessons-learned among youth representatives, the event organizers also convened a session on how to practically support states after the NAPs had been developed. This provided the impetus to establish a steering committee from the event, which aims to support the development and implementation of NAPs within AU member states. The meeting provided an opportunity to brainstorm the function, structure and needs of these committees.

ACCORD will continue to engage and support multidimensional stakeholders to further the YPS agenda in Africa.