With more than 60% of Africa’s population under the age of 25, the continent is in the midst of a historic youth surge. If this demographic dividend is fully realized, projections suggest Africa could add as much as $500 billion a year to its economies for the next three decades. But those gains are not guaranteed. They depend on whether young Africans are meaningfully included in shaping solutions to the continent’s most urgent challenges — none more pressing than water scarcity, climate change and social inequality.
Seipati Mokhema is a research officer at the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) in Pretoria, South Africa, focusing on youth inclusion in agricultural and water management systems. Her work addresses transforming policies into actionable programs that create economic opportunities for vulnerable and marginalized youth while ensuring water security.
In this conversation, Mokhema shares her experiences working to empower young Africans to drive sustainable change in water resource management.
What does a researcher working on gender and youth inclusion within water security do day-to-day, and why did you choose this path?
Seipati Mokhema: I focus on integrating inclusive approaches across our research and development initiatives, ensuring that African women, men, youth and all marginalized groups are recognized in agricultural and water management. My work centers on pathways for youth engagement in transforming agri-food systems — looking at inclusive financing, technological innovations and through engaging public institutions.
Before IWMI, I worked on development initiatives and research programs aimed at opening up various employment and educational opportunities for youth across South Africa. South African youth, particularly those of color, are still vulnerable to lingering exclusionary socio-economic mechanisms enforced by the Apartheid regime, with democratic reforms having limited reach. As such, we’re finding mechanisms to make our systems responsive to young people’s educational and skills-development needs. Africa has immense potential because of our youth dividend. I’m using land and water management as an entry point for building equitable, sustainable livelihoods.
Where do you see the biggest gaps in enabling concrete action on youth-centered water security?
Mokhema: Lack of disaggregated, context-specific data. We have policies and tools, but they don’t capture how young people actually experience climate change and economic challenges. Without data accounting for gender, geography, livelihood and socioeconomic status, it’s difficult to design effective interventions. You can’t use a blanket approach — you need to understand ground-level realities: how communities survive, their immediate challenges, their social structures.
Another gap is methods and tools for documenting and amplifying youth-led innovations in water management. These innovations exist, but without mechanisms to make them visible, they don’t gain traction or scale. We need youth-informed evidence that repositions young people as strategic partners and innovators in achieving water security, not just beneficiaries.
You were a member of the 2025 Y20 Advisory Committee — the youth engagement group of the G20. How did you become involved with the Y20, and what has that experience been like?
Mokhema: When South Africa was announced as holding the G20 presidency in December 2024, I thought, “Excellent! When next will an African country have this opportunity again? Better get to work then!”
That is when I applied to the Y20 working group on inclusive economic growth and employment because it focuses on job creation in emerging industries — particularly the blue economy. This aligned perfectly with IWMI’s Gender, Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) research group’s mandate and work on inclusive water management strategies.
The experience has been exciting but challenging. The Y20 is massive, with hundreds of young people from the United Stated, India, Mexico and all over Africa — all contributing to the different thematic areas of the group. We held monthly meetings leading up to the Y20 summit, which was held from 18 to 22 August 2025. The summit brought together young leaders from G20 countries under the theme “Youth Building Bridges: Uniting for Solidarity, Championing Equality, Driving Sustainability,” to present their visions and policy recommendations on inclusive economic growth, technology, conservation and African unity. It was inspiring to see how committed young people, from Africa in particular, are to transforming the continent. But there were logistical hurdles such as tight deadlines and funding constraints. Despite these challenges, being part of this network creates opportunities for continued engagement beyond South Africa’s presidency.
What IWMI research or projects have been most valuable in these global conversations?
Mokhema: The young people in my Y20 working group — those focused on blue economies, just transition, climate change — we speak the same development and transformation language. It was easy to integrate elements from IWMI’s gender strategy, which is our framework for gender equality and social inclusion. I emphasized three components: breaking down barriers to youth participation in water management, empowerment through training and access to information, and ensuring young women’s voices are heard in policy-making processes.
Two projects exemplify this. In 2024, we established a revolving fund in Zimbabwe with two partner universities. The fund provided young people and rural women with access to short-term loans for agribusinesses, including fruit vendors, poultry farmers and mushroom growers. Most of the beneficiaries of the revolving fund had previously been excluded from traditional banking due to a lack of credit scores. The project thus created sustained value chains while fostering financial inclusion.
Our newest project, AquaFuturesSA, which is funded by South Africa’s Water Research Commission, is currently being implemented in the Central Karoo, a semi-arid region in the Northern Cape of South Africa. Through the project, we are co-developing water management strategies with local youth in drought-prone communities and simultaneously creating opportunities for the youth to develop an interest in turning water management into long-term careers.
What’s the biggest ask from young people working on water and climate issues?
Mokhema: Space for youth voices — but not just voice. We need tangible implementation and strategies that become lived realities. Having a Y20 is good, but young people want to lead these interventions, whether it’s the Just Transition, climate policies or educational reforms. We’re aware of the challenges within our communities and by extension the rest of the world. We need the opportunity to lead and implement our own innovations. These innovations must be youth-led because they come from us and address our specific needs as African youth facing climate disasters, pandemics and economic shocks.
Beyond the summits and policy papers — what are the concrete, immediate steps to put young Africans at the center of water security?
Mokhema: Youth are the future, chants aren’t enough. We need responsive mechanisms and political will to action policies that have existed for years. These need integration into water and land management institutions at every level — community, municipal, provincial, national and international.
Our Northern Cape project builds on South Africa’s National Youth Policy 2020-2030, which mandates youth inclusion in water management. We’re using existing tools to effect change. My message is to deliberately integrate young people and their voices into envisioning solutions for a water-secure world. The policies exist. It’s about deliberate practice and consideration.
A little goes a long way — I’ve seen transformation in Zimbabwe when you combine modest resources with community networks. There’s enormous potential. We just need the political will.
