302 - Mainstreaming Youth Participation in African evaluations – voice, mass representation and inclusion.

Abstract Information: In Africa, youth participation in evaluation processes is increasingly recognized as essential for ensuring inclusivity, relevance, and effectiveness of outcomes. This paper explores the concept of mainstreaming youth participation in evaluations, focusing on the dimensions of voice, representation, and inclusion. It highlights the significance of engaging young people in evaluation activities to capture diverse perspectives, address power imbalances, and promote ownership and innovation of development initiatives. By incorporating youth voices into evaluation processes, stakeholders would gain valuable insights into the experiences, needs, and priorities of this demographic group, which constitutes the majority of Africa’s population and workforce, ultimately enhancing the relevance and impact of development interventions.

The paper is grounded in our experiences as African evaluators in the last 2 decades, specifically, designing, managing, and evaluating youth-focused interventions. Building on practical experiences and examples from Ghana and elsewhere in Africa, we explore and discuss various strategies for mainstreaming youth participation in evaluations, including the use of innovative methodologies, digital technologies, and participatory approaches. We emphasize the importance of creating safe and supportive spaces for young people to express their views, share their experiences, and contribute to decision-making processes. Additionally, the paper advocates for the involvement of a diverse range of youth from different backgrounds, identities, and geographic locations. By ensuring a good representation of youth voices, evaluations would capture the complexities and nuances of youth experiences, avoid tokenistic approaches, and promote genuine inclusion.

Furthermore, the paper underscores the importance of fostering an inclusive evaluation culture that values and respects youth perspectives. It emphasizes the need for capacity-building initiatives in Africa to equip young people with the skills, knowledge, and confidence to engage meaningfully in evaluation activities. It further highlights the role of evaluation practitioners, policymakers, and civil society organizations in creating enabling environments for youth participation and youth-led evaluation initiatives on the continent.

The paper concludes by emphasizing the transformative potential of mainstreaming youth participation in evaluations for advancing sustainable development and promoting social justice. It calls for collective action to overcome barriers to youth engagement, address power asymmetries, and promote meaningful collaboration between young people and other stakeholders. Ultimately, mainstreaming youth participation in evaluations contributes to building more inclusive, equitable, and responsive evaluation processes that empower young people as agents of change in Africa and beyond.