Youth Series: Connecting today’s youth to the digital future
This is an initiative from Generation Unlimited and PwC to amplify the reflections of young people about the digital divide
“With life shifting to online, our impact as grassroots changemakers has decreased due to the restricted reach. For this reason, the world needs to connect every young person. Let’s reimagine a holistic system to eradicate the youth digital divide.”
—Rafik Amrani, Algeria.
“In a time of crisis and uncertainty like the present, digital learning has come to stay. As a matter of urgency, young people need digital skills to embrace this digital world.”
—Victoria Quaynor, Ghana.
“The pandemic is exposing and increasing the inequalities we were ignoring, showing us that we have a huge task ahead in the following years; are we ready for it?”
—Ulises Brengi, Argentina.
“We must establish a bold, new agenda for digitally disadvantaged youth by reallocating resources, realigning institutional priorities, and repositioning young people’s ability to create innovative solutions. This is our chance to pivot into a more inclusive future for all.”
—Tijani Christian, Jamaica.
“Young people are currently teaching children who are out of school. Their efforts should be linked to the education system through training and policy. This can then be used to support their application for jobs in the future.”
—Cynthia Nyongesa, Kenya.
“Closing the digital divide requires a collaborative effort between states, and other sectors like education, businesses and philanthropy...Restricted access expands the digital divide, which needs to be closed in order to make technology a boon for all.”
–Vibhu Sharma
One in three. That’s the proportion of students around the world—some 463 million young people—who were unable to access remote learning when schools closed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, one in six youth have stopped working since the beginning of the outbreak. Young people who do not have reliable access to the internet, or technology or devices, and who lack digital skills and acumen have been hit particularly hard. The pandemic has accelerated trends that were already in play and exposed, in a stark light, structural weaknesses in institutions and economies. Inequalities are rising at alarming rates for the most vulnerable in every society, particularly for the unconnected half of the world.
See how Generation Unlimited, PwC, and UNICEF are addressing this issue in the following report.