African Union Commission backs effort to close Africa’s growing green skills gap

The African Union Commission has now joined a widening group of partners supporting efforts to address this gap through the upcoming GreenWorks 4 Africa Forum, which will focus on how the continent can turn its climate transition into job creation and enterprise growth.

According to Jacob’s Ladder Africa (JLA), which is convening the initiative, the discussions so far have exposed a structural challenge across Africa’s green economy plans.

“Across the continent, there is a growing recognition that Africa’s green transition must ultimately be measured not only by emissions targets or climate commitments, but by its ability to create decent jobs, strengthen skills, support enterprise growth, and improve livelihoods,” said Sellah Bogonko, Co-Founder and CEO of JLA.

She added that while opportunities exist, stronger coordination will be required across sectors and institutions.

“Doing so will require stronger collaboration between governments, development institutions, investors, educators, employers, and young people themselves,” she said.

Organisers say a series of pre-convenings ahead of the August 2026 summit revealed persistent gaps between ambition and implementation capacity, particularly in workforce development and enterprise readiness.

The forum, scheduled for 12–13 August 2026 in Nairobi, is expected to bring together policymakers, investors, private sector leaders and youth representatives to explore how Africa can better align its green transition with job creation and industrial development.

JLA says a key objective will be to move beyond dialogue toward practical tools, including an Africa Green Jobs Toolkit and a proposed Green Jobs Taxonomy to standardise how green employment is defined and measured across the continent.