Africa: Call for papers on the African Youth Charter
2008 was the Year of African Youth, yet the African Youth Charter, adopted by the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union in July 2006, has still only been ratified by 13 countries –needing two more ratifications before it can enter into force. In January 2009, the Assembly declared the years 2009-2019 as the decade of youth development in Africa.
2008 was the Year of African Youth, yet the African Youth Charter, adopted by the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union in July 2006, has still only been ratified by 13 countries –needing two more ratifications before it can enter into force. In January 2009, the Assembly declared the years 2009-2019 as the decade of youth development in Africa.
Among the priority issues identified for action are: education, employment, safe spaces for recreation and leisure, participation in policy-making processes at national, regional and continental levels, and health issues. The Pan African Youth Union is the focal point for the AU on youth matters.
AfriMAP invites submissions of papers on the African Youth Charter and its implementation in Africa. Among the different approaches that could be adopted are:
· A comparative analysis of the African Youth Charter with other international instruments relating to youth, highlighting its strengths and weaknesses.
· An analysis of the ways in which the Youth Charter relates to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and other African human rights standards.
· An analysis of the extent to which one or more countries already respect the standards established by the Charter .
· An outline of the trends among the youth movements on the continent, highlighting ways of organizing or principal topics of concern.
· A description of a particular youth organization and its work, highlighting its successes and challenges.
· A focus on a particular article of the Charter: especially Article 11 on Youth Participation, highlighting best or worst practices in one or more countries.
· The extent to which the standards established by the Charter are adequate, in the face of the situation of youth on the continent.
· Proposals for implementation of the Charter by the African Union Commission under Article 28 or by other organs of the AU.
· Proposals for implementation of the Charter at national level.
· The role of Africa’s development partners in ensuring respect
for the Charter.
The deadline for submissions to be received is 30 June 2009.
Our objective is to encourage and promote new thinking and debate on issues that AfriMAP is exploring through its research. We are particularly keen to encourage submissions based on primary sources, personal research and innovative thinking. Papers are accepted in English, French and Portuguese, between 1,500-2,000 words in length, and those selected will be published on our website. Winners will receive an honorarium of US$250. See the Guidelines on Call for Papers on the AfriMAP website
The winning papers from our previous calls for papers are available on
the AfriMAP website. If you would like to contact AfriMAP for advice on
topics for your paper, please email us at [email][email protected]