A continental nexus for youth evidence.
AfriYouth connects research, policy, design, entrepreneurship, and foresight to convert youth agency into lasting systemic prosperity.
The Mission
To empower Africa's youth to generate evidence, shape policy, and develop innovative solutions to pressing socio-economic challenges through research, human-centered design, and entrepreneurship.
The Vision
An Africa where empowered young people use evidence, innovation, and entrepreneurship to drive inclusive and sustainable socio-economic transformation.
Five engines. One closed loop.
Most youth initiatives operate in isolation. AfriYouth bridges grassroots evidence, policy drafting, design sprints, and venture capital into a continuous transformation cycle.
Grassroots young researchers collect rigorous quantitative and qualitative evidence from urban informal settlements, rural farms, and digital creative hubs.
Community lived experience & grassroots data
Peer-reviewed findings & open datasets
The six pillars guiding our ecosystem.
Innovation
Catalyzing grassroots, technological, and socio-economic breakthroughs designed by and for African communities.
Youth Empowerment
Equipping young leaders with agency, research capabilities, and venture capital readiness.
Sustainability
Anchoring all interventions in long-term environmental, economic, and institutional resilience.
Global Impact
Amplifying African youth solutions on regional and international policy stages.
Human-Centered Design
Grounding interventions in deep community listening, co-design, and iterative prototyping.
Leadership Development
Fostering ethical, visionary changemakers prepared to steward public and private institutions.
Steered by pan-African practitioners.
AfriYouth Innovation Labs is guided by seasoned African development economists, civic technologists, human-centered designers, and youth organizers across the continent.
Dr. Chidinma Okafor
Executive Director & Head of ForesightFormer senior advisor at UNECA and Rhodes Scholar with 15+ years orchestrating pan-African youth economic policy and foresight initiatives.
Tariq El-Haddad
Director of Applied Research & Open DataEconometrician and data ethicist who previously headed statistical diagnostics across 12 African national statistics offices.
Mireille Kayitesi
Head of Human-Centered Design & Citizen LabsPioneer in participatory urban design in East Africa, leading community design sprints across Kigali, Nairobi, and Dar es Salaam.
Kwame Boateng
Director of Venture Incubation & CapitalSerial civic technologist and angel investor who has backed over 30 seed-stage African impact startups across West and Southern Africa.
Research Advisory & Governance Council
Independent OversightExplore our methodology and governance.
Access peer-reviewed frameworks, open data toolkits, or consult directly with the executive directorate.