Adolescents and young people aged between 14 and 24 are invited to present creative ideas and innovative solutions to respond to the difficulties facing their communities. The initiative is from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), launched last Friday, with applications starting today
UNICEF is developing an initiative in Angola, in partnership with the Ministry of Planning, Public Administration, Labor and Social Security, Youth and Sports and the Ministry of Education, called “Genius Challenge”, to encourage young people with creative ideas. According to the project manager, Elizandra Katiana, UNICEF will give one million kwanzas, called seed capital, to the five best chosen teams, to get off the ground and develop the project that is presented. The challenge was launched last Friday and, today, the 25th, the website will be available for young people to start registering.
Likewise, the “Desafio Genial” project team will be present to explain and deliver registration forms to I and II Cycle secondary schools and universities. “We intend to reach the most vulnerable areas, taking into account that there is almost nothing in these places. Only those aged between 14 and 24 will be able to register. On the other hand, every young person who is already associated with an organization will not be able to participate,” he said. The biggest focus is social inclusion, disability and vulnerability. After registration, filtering will take place, where a maximum of ten teams will be chosen, with groups made up of a minimum of two and a maximum of five members. Project execution takes place in May and ends in June, after those selected receive training to develop their projects.
More than 40 countries have this challenge
For his part, the representative of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Antero de Pina, said that the “Genius Challenge” is part of a global initiative called Youth Challenge, by his institution, to help young people from several countries to develop their creative ideas and innovative solutions, and respond to the challenges they encounter, in their daily lives, in their communities. With this challenge, Angola joins more than 40 countries that implement the initiative, thus encouraging the participation and civic engagement of young people who seek to have a positive impact on their communities.
The brilliant challenge has already inspired 15 million young people, the initiative, in Angola, challenges young people and equips them with tools to implement their ideas aimed at social entrepreneurship. “It is necessary to make more investments in terms of opportunities for young people, taking into account that 22% of young people do not study, work or receive any training”, highlighted Antero de Pina. He further said that these investments need to be made especially in education, skills development and job placement opportunities, with special attention to girls, people with disabilities, and other marginalized populations.
“Desafio Genial” aims to be a platform that promotes young Angolans as part of the solution and, at the same time, provides spaces and opportunities for them to develop skills and abilities, for professional and personal development. Given the countless challenges that young people face and the uncertainties about the future, initiatives like these can be seen as highly valuable opportunities, valuing youth as a driving force for growth in Angola.
On the occasion, the Secretary of State for planning, Luís Epalanga, highlighted that current demographic development is characterized by a population percentage in which young people represent around 65%, aged under 25 years. He said that a truly young population can be an important factor in boosting economic and social development, as long as there is a strong focus on education, health and the economy. To this end, the Government has developed actions in light of commitments to evolve towards a model of society that values young people. Luís Epalanga called on youth to know how to take advantage of all similar initiatives developed, either by the Executive or by its partners.