The GreenWorks 4 Africa: Africa Green Skills and Jobs Summit has called for stronger coordination among governments, businesses, skills institutions, investors and development partners to support Africa’s transition to a green economy.
The summit, which concluded in Nairobi on Thursday, brought together government officials, development partners, private-sector leaders, researchers and practitioners.
The aim was to discuss skills, employment and enterprise systems needed to support the continent’s green economic transformation.
Environment and Climate Change PS Festus Ng’eno said the forum offered a useful approach by focusing on practical solutions and implementation rather than dialogue alone.
“We truly appreciate what you are doing as Jacob’s Ladder Africa. Governments across Africa are looking for models that work because our dignity and prosperity depend on it,” Ng’eno said.
He linked investment in the green economy to Kenya’s wider development plans as the country begins to develop Vision 2060.
“Investing in green energy is investing in national development,” he said.
Ng’eno also welcomed the forum’s focus on bringing different stakeholders together to develop practical solutions. He said such an approach could help move discussions from dialogue to implementation.
Jacob’s Ladder Africa co-founder and chief executive officer Sellah Bogonko said the value of the forum was in bringing different actors into the same problem-solving space.
“We must connect the dots that ensure that we are moving in the same direction, in a concerted manner and with the same effort,” Bogonko said.
Participants identified dual training and apprenticeships as key areas that should be strengthened as part of green skills development.
They called for greater participation by employers and industry in training programmes to ensure that skills development responds to the needs of the labour market.
The summit also highlighted the need to expand recognition of prior learning. This would enable young people and workers who have acquired skills outside formal education systems to access emerging opportunities.
Participants further called for closer alignment between training programmes and labour-market demand.
They said curricula and skills programmes should respond to the occupations and capabilities required by businesses and value chains.
The discussions also placed emphasis on locally led solutions and the development of local capacity.
Participants said communities, enterprises and practitioners should be involved in designing green economic solutions rather than being treated only as recipients of such interventions.
The summit also called for stronger collaboration among government, business, skills institutions, investors and development partners.
Participants said interventions should be designed and implemented as connected systems rather than isolated programmes.
The forum further emphasised the need to consider Africa’s growing young population in green economic planning.
Participants said the continent’s youth population should be viewed as an economic asset, with deliberate pathways created for young people to participate in and benefit from the green economy.
The summit also advanced efforts to broaden the Alliance for Greening Skills and Opportunities Africa.
The expanded alliance is expected to provide a platform for continued collaboration among governments, employers, investors, academia, skills institutions and other stakeholders on Africa’s green skills and employment agenda.
GreenWorks 4 Africa is a continental forum convened by Jacob’s Ladder Africa in partnership with FSD-Africa, AGRA, GIZ-Kenya and CGD.
The forum brings together policymakers, investors, businesses, development institutions, researchers, educators, entrepreneurs and young innovators to examine practical pathways for Africa’s green economic transformation.
It is based on evidence and case studies from across the continent, with a focus on understanding what is working, why it is working and what can be replicated, adapted and scaled.
Jacob’s Ladder Africa is a Pan-African non-governmental organisation focused on youth-led green enterprise growth as a pathway to inclusive and climate-resilient economic transformation.
The organisation supports the development and scaling of enterprises that create employment, deliver climate solutions and strengthen economic resilience.
It works with governments, investors and local ecosystems to support young entrepreneurs in turning skills and innovation into businesses and sustainable livelihoods.
