AFRICA JOB CREATION FORUM 2026
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | 9th–11th December
Pathways to Decent Jobs for Africa’s Youth—Accelerating Entrepreneurship, Wage Employment, Labour Mobility, Digital Inclusion and Financial Inclusion through Public–Private Partnership.
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Shaping Africa's Economic Future
The Africa Job Creation Forum brings together governments, continental institutions, employers, investors, development partners, young people, women entrepreneurs and MSMEs to advance practical pathways to decent work and inclusive growth.
More than an annual convening, the Forum serves as a platform for partnership, investment and accountability around job creation. Participating countries and partners bring forward initiatives, mobilise investment, strengthen employment systems, support enterprise growth and track progress toward measurable jobs outcomes.
Sub-Saharan Africa is experiencing the fastest growth in working-age population of any region. Around 12 million young people are expected to enter the labour market each year, while only about 3 million formal wage jobs are currently created annually. By 2050, the region’s working-age population is projected to increase by about 740 million people. At the same time, more than four in five jobs are informal. The challenge is therefore not only to create more jobs, but to expand access to more productive, better-paying and more secure work.
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Young People Enter the Labour Market Each Year
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Formal Wage Jobs Created Each Year
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Projected Increase in Working-Age Population by 2050
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Why Attend The Africa Job Creation Forum 2026?
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TicketING
event agenda
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Day 1 — Where Will the Jobs Come From?
- Opening Ceremony & High-Level Framing
- Africa’s Jobs Outlook
- Ministerial Dialogue on Job-Rich Sectors
- Financing MSMEs & Value Chains
- Labour Mobility & AfCFTA
- High-Level Policy & Investment Dialogue
- Opening Ceremony and Leaders’ Call to Action Africa’s Jobs Outlook: Demography, Productivity and Decent Work From Social Protection to Economic Participation Digital Public Infrastructure for Jobs and Inclusion Ministerial Roundtable: Country Job-Creation Priorities Launch of Country Action Compact Clinics Opening of the SME and Innovation Exhibition
Day 2 — How Do We Connect Youth to Jobs?
- What Works in Youth Employment
- Differentiated Pathways to Decent Work
- AeTrade Implementation Showcase
- Investment & Legacy Project Showcase
- Skills Without Borders
- Digital Solutions for Employment & Enterprise
- Formal launch of public-private commitments under the Africa Strategic Investment Alliance, targeting agricultural value chain financing.
Day 3 — How Do We Move from Evidence to Action and Scale?
- Inclusive Employment
- World Development Report Consultation
- Investment & Legacy Project Showcase II
- Closing Ceremony & Recognition Awards
- Field Visits
- Policy recommendations aligned with the CAADP Kampala Declaration and AfCFTA protocols on women and youth in trade.
- Networking Area
2026 priority tracks
Social Protection and Economic Inclusion
Turn safety nets into pathways to skills, livelihoods, entrepreneurship and productive employment.
Skills, Wage Employment and Labour Mobility
Align training with employer demand and advance safe, well-governed mobility pathways within Africa and globally.
Investment for Job-Creating Value Chains
Mobilise patient and blended capital for agrifood systems, manufacturing, logistics, digital services, green growth and other job-rich sectors.
Digital Systems for Jobs
Strengthen digital identity, social registries, labour-market information systems, payment systems and interoperable public infrastructure.
Entrepreneurship, MSMEs and Market Access
Support enterprise formalisation, capacity building, finance, digital commerce and access to AfCFTA markets.
Measurement, Accountability and Scale
Track commitments, verified jobs, enterprise growth, investment mobilisation and implementation progress.
Promoted by
IN COLLABORATION WITH
Hosted by
Hosted by The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
IN COLLABORATION WITH
PROMOTED BY
Who should participate
- Heads of State and Government
- Ministers and public institutions
- The African Union Commission
- AfCFTA institutions
- Regional Economic Communities
- Development finance institutions
- Multilateral and bilateral partners
- Banks and investors
- Employers and business associations
- MSMEs and start-ups
- Youth and women entrepreneurs
- Organisations of persons with disabilities
- Academia
- Civil society
- Media
- Diaspora networks
Anticipated Gains
- Adoption of the Addis Ababa Declaration 2026.
- Country Action Compacts for participating governments and delivery partners.
- A prioritised investment and partnership pipeline.
- Scale-up agreements for national digital, financial inclusion, enterprise and employment pilots.
- An agreed jobs measurement and reporting framework.
- Commitments to strengthen labour-market information, social protection and employment-service interoperability.
- New partnerships supporting youth, women, MSMEs and persons with disabilities.
What the 2026 Forum is designed to deliver
- The Addis Ababa Declaration 2026, building on the 2025 Adwa Declaration.
- Country Action Compacts with priorities, delivery partners, financing needs, owners and timelines.
- A bankable pipeline of MSME, value-chain, digital inclusion and employment programmes.
- Commitments to strengthen interoperable labour-market and social-protection delivery systems.
- Partnerships to scale national pilots and the AeTrade Integrated Ecosystem.
- A practical jobs results framework and annual progress dashboard.
Implementation platforms
The Summit connects policy commitments to practical implementation through country programmes and partner platforms. These include the Africa Strategic Investment Alliance for investment mobilisation and aggregation; Sokokuu for market access and digital trade; AeLearning for enterprise and workforce skills; AeTrust for digital financial services; AeLogistics for trade enablement; and national employment and labour-market systems.
Africa’s jobs challenge cannot be solved by one institution or one annual meeting. It requires coordinated policy, investment, technology, enterprise growth and accountability. Join the Africa Job Creation Forum 2026 and help move from declarations to measurable jobs.
Registration & Contact Information
Registration
Don’t miss the opportunity to contribute to discussions shaping Africa’s agricultural future and job creation efforts.
Register today to be part of this transformative dialogue.
Frequently Asked Questions
The Africa Job Creation Forum 2026 is planned for Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in 9-11 December 2026.
The Forum is intended for governments, continental and regional institutions, development partners, investors, employers, MSMEs, entrepreneurs, youth and women networks, organisations of persons with disabilities, academia, civil society and media.
Submit a partnership expression of interest describing your institution, priority countries or sectors, proposed contribution and the outcomes you would like to support.
Yes. A dedicated exhibition will showcase export-ready products, employment solutions, digital platforms and innovations. Applications will be reviewed against published eligibility criteria.
The Forum is a partnership and investment-mobilisation platform. Financing decisions will be made by participating funds, banks, investors and programme partners under their own eligibility, due-diligence and approval processes.
The Forum will promote a transparent results framework defining direct and indirect jobs, enterprise outcomes, inclusion indicators, investment mobilisation and verification methods.
Subscribe to Forum updates and follow the official news and media page for dates, registration, programme announcements and partner opportunities.
Contact & Social Media
Organizers
- Promoted By – AeTrade Group
- In Collaboration With -African Union Commission (AUC) & World Bank
- Hosted By – The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
- info@aetradegroup.com
- (+250) 790 139 188
- 08.00 A.M. - 16.00 P.M.