“Migration is not a problem to solve, but an opportunity to seize,” says Walter Kasempa, AU/IOM Migration Ambassador.

As the most mobile and fastest-growing demographic on the continent, youth are both drivers and beneficiaries of migration. Whether searching for opportunity, escaping conflict, or building cross-border networks, young people are shaping the present and future of African migration.

They are also at the forefront of innovation leveraging technology, advocacy, and entrepreneurship to create new pathways for social and economic inclusion. Seen through this lens, migration is not a crisis to manage, but a lever for growth and renewal.

Yet many remain undocumented, which limits their access to formal systems and sidelines them from participating fully in society. Without legal identity, they remain invisible to institutions and vulnerable to exclusion. Ensuring young Africans are counted, protected by effective policies, and equipped to participate in migration governance is not just about inclusion. It is a strategic investment in the continent’s future.

In a video message recorded on the sidelines of a regional workshop on legal identity and migration organized by the Economic Commission for Africa in Harare, Zimbabwe, Walter Kasempa, AU/IOM Migration Ambassador, called on young Africans to take an active role in shaping systems that affect their mobility and inclusion.