Tony Elumelu, chairman of Heirs Holdings and Tony Elumelu Foundation, has said young people in Africa are leaving because they lack economic hope and opportunities.
He raised the alarm while speaking on Thursday in Paris at the 'Tech for Summit' organised by Emmanuel Macron, president of France.
On why young people on the African continent are migrating to countries in the global North, Elumelu said the lack of economic opportunities is a driving force.
He said: “Africa needs this type of gathering – we are a continent with over 60% of its people under the age of 30 – they need economic opportunities, they need hope”.
“I represented the African continent to draw attention to our young ones who seek economic hope and opportunity via technology.
“Technology is a great employer of labour, technology drives inclusiveness, technology helps to alleviate poverty, but we must not forget that in Africa we are just starting out and we cannot afford to lag behind.
“We need the world to pay attention to Africa so that young Africans are not disenfranchised and left behind in this new technology era. We need the world to pay attention to the plight of young Africans so that issues of migration can be addressed in a more fundamental way – by tackling the root cause which is a lack of economic hope.”
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