African Leaders Urged to Turn Skills Training Into Jobs
African leaders at Africa Skills Week 2026 have called for better alignment between education systems and industrial needs to combat high youth unemployment. President Emmerson Mnangagwa emphasized the need to process raw minerals locally rather than exporting them as primary commodities.
Why it matters
The initiative aims to address the structural economic challenges of African nations by shifting from raw material extraction to value-added manufacturing.
African leaders have been urged to strengthen links between education, skills development and industry to ensure training translates into jobs, innovation and economic growth.
The call was made by President Emmerson Mnangagwa and other speakers at the official opening of Africa Skills Week 2026 in Harare on Monday, under the theme “Skills for Resilient and Competitive African Industries: From Training to Value Creation”.
Mnangagwa said Africa needed to combine its abundant natural resources with skilled labour, technology and industrial capacity to create sustainable wealth.
He urged African countries to end the export of unprocessed minerals and invest in local industries capable of turning raw materials into higher-value products.
“Our continent’s vast reserves of minerals, including lithium, platinum, nickel, cobalt, and rare earth elements should never be extracted and exported as primary raw commodities. This counter-productive legacy should end,” he said.
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