Meet The Unlimited: Sobel Aziz Ngom

My name is Sobel Aziz Ngom. I am originally from and live in Senegal, on the West African coast. I work to improve the conditions of education, social inclusion, and professional insertion of young people. I also lead a coalition of youth initiatives that brings together state, development and corporate partners to implement ambitious projects for and with young people. This is the Consortium Jeunesse Sénégal. It also serves as the local chapter of GenU in Senegal.

I am a member of the GenU Global Board. We are about 50 people, many of whom are leaders from the private, civil and government sectors committed to youth. I am part of a group of about ten young advocates, coming from all over the world, to raise and represent the voice of young people in our countries and regions. Our role is essentially to participate in the strategic discussions of GenU, to promote the effectiveness and visibility of the initiative in our countries, and to ensure that our actions are in line with our commitments.

GenU is a unique and very inspiring youth alliance model that has influenced me to develop and launch a local chapter in my country, Senegal. Today, I have left the executive management of Social Change Factory, the organization I created 5 years ago, to lead the CJS and carry the ambition of GenU for the youth in my country.

I believe that every young person should have the opportunity to learn and develop their potential to build a life and contribute to society. I believe in the need to include young people in the planning, development and implementation of policies and projects that directly concern them.

I believe that only a meaningful mobilization of the strengths, intelligence, and resources, be they private, public, or civil, can allow us to respond to the structural challenges facing young Senegalese people.

My dream is to contribute to make these convictions become a reality one day.

Young people need to know that their minds, their talents, and their activism can be expressed in ways that make a difference, no matter their age, gender, nationality, or income level. This is what history shows us. So many great movements and revolutions, both economic and social, have been led by young people. They should not be afraid to experiment, test, fail, and try again before they succeed. They must know that although society and the world are not fair, they must still take part in it, and arm themselves with knowledge and experience to change things according to their convictions. And especially today, when the hardships seem to be bigger than ever, they must also know that the opportunities to change things are increasing.