Founder, Daisy Oak Foundation, Dr. Kiema Ogunlana has lamented that the starting line for millions of young Africans remains unequal in automation, Artificial Intelligence and a rapidly evolving global economy.
Ogunlana who also doubles as Program Director of the foundation made this known on Tuesday while speaking during the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) 81 with the theme, “Work, Innovation and Opportunity: Preparing the Next Generation for the Global Economy.”
She said: “I’m Dr. Kiema Ogunlana, Program Director at Daisy Oak Foundation, Nigeria. My work sits at the intersection of social development, humanitarian action and creating pathways to opportunity for people and communities too often left at the margins.
“As we reflect on the theme, “Work, Innovation and Opportunity: Preparing the Next Generation for the Global Economy,” I believe there is one important question we must be willing to ask: Opportunity for whom?
“We are preparing a generation for AI, automation and a rapidly evolving global economy. Yet for millions of young people, particularly across Africa, the starting line remains unequal.
“And that matters, because we cannot prepare young people for the jobs of the future while leaving them trapped by the barriers of the present.”
Ogunlana noted that while skills are important, skills alone are not enough, adding that a young person needs a pathway; from learning to earning, from talent to opportunity, and from innovation to economic mobility.
According to her, This means rethinking education around the economies that are emerging, connecting young people to markets, technology, mentorship and capital, and deliberately reaching those furthest from opportunity.
Ogunlana stressed that the next generation does not lack ambition, talent or ideas, what remains unequal is access.
She argued that the real challenge before them is not simply preparing young people for the global economy, but preparing the global economy to include them.
Ogunlana maintained that if the future of the work is truly going to work, it must work for everyone.