An offshoot of the African Union Bingwa Initiative that mobilized Youth Health Advocates (Bingwas) to rally communities and boost vaccination uptake across Africa during COVID-19 will launch a new program in two months. The Bingwa PLUS Initiative plans to empower young Africans by building their capacity to design, resource, and manage community health initiatives.
“African youth are more than just a demographic; they are agents of change, professionals, innovators, advocates, and leaders in the public health sector,” said Dr Chrys Promesse Kaniki, Senior Technical Officer for Strategic Programmes and Youth Programmes Lead at Africa CDC. “Their role in Africa’s health agenda is a testament to their invaluable contribution to shaping a healthier, prosperous, and more resilient Africa,” he added.
The Africa CDC Youth Programme, in collaboration with the GIZ Office to the African Union, organized a two-day planning workshop for the Bingwa PLUS Initiative from June 20 to 21, 2024, in Abuja, Nigeria.
“This workshop marks the beginning of an exciting journey for Bingwa PLUS, which aims to empower young Africans aged 18-35 with training, mentorship, and financing to develop and implement innovative, scalable solutions to health challenges in their communities,” said Dr Kaniki.
The Bingwa PLUS Initiative builds on the success of the African Union COVID-19 Vaccination Bingwa Initiative and will identify, incubate, and fund innovative youth-led and community-based health initiatives. The planning workshop focused on developing an implementation roadmap for the ten-month pilot phase of the Bingwa PLUS Initiative. A call for applications to participants from all AU Member States will be made, and successful candidates will be notified.
This pilot phase is expected to broaden youths’ understanding of various continental health agendas and strengthen their contribution to Africa CDC’s New Public Health Order and Strategic Plan 2023-27. Africa is the youngest continent in terms of population, with approximately 60% of Africans being under 25 and 40% of the population reportedly being aged 15 years and younger. By 2030, up to 42% of the world’s youth will be African. In recognition of this, Africa CDC has been engaging African youth through initiatives such as the AU COVID-19 Vaccination Bingwa Initiative, Africa CDC’s inaugural Youth Advisory Team for Health (YAT4H), and its Youth Pre-Conference, an annual event that brings together young people from across the African continent to discuss and strategize on health-related issues.
