Advancing youth-led peacebuilding through digital technologies in Africa

This policy brief examines how African youth are utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) and digital technologies to decentralize peacebuilding, shift early warning systems toward data-driven analysis, and challenge traditional conflict narratives. While youth act as key knowledge creators, the document warns that digital divides, gender gaps, and underdeveloped policy frameworks risk marginalizing these contributions and reinforcing existing power hierarchies.

• African youth have transitioned from being passive consumers of technology to active knowledge creators who co-develop strategies and influence peace and tolerance efforts within their communities.
• Digitalization is shifting early warning systems from centralized, elite-led models to decentralized, youth-led networks. Examples include the use of Ushahidi in Kenya, the iVerify tool in Zambia, Sierra Leone, and Liberia, and the use of machine learning by Nigerian startups like Dataphyte and S4C to forecast political unrest.
• Youth are exercising 'epistemic power' by integrating local languages and indigenous knowledge into AI tools to prevent linguistic exclusion. This is critical because 88% of the 2,000+ spoken African languages are essentially ignored by computational tools, and only 49 are available on Google Translate.
• Existing policy frameworks often treat digital transformation and youth peace and security (YPS) as separate tracks. The AU's Continental Framework on Youth, Peace and Security (CFYPS), adopted in June 2020, focuses on traditional interventions and contains little mention of digital technology or cybersecurity.
• Significant digital divides threaten the legitimacy of digital peacebuilding. In 2024, only 38% of Africans used the internet compared to 68% globally. Furthermore, a gender gap exists where women are 12% less likely to use the internet than men (31% vs 43% in 2024).
• The document identifies risks of digital suppression and linguistic failure in AI moderation. For example, during Ethiopia's civil conflict (2020–2022), Facebook's systems failed to handle Amharic and Tigrinya, which fueled incendiary posts.
• Nigeria's draft National AI Strategy (2023–2024) aims to equip 70% of its young workforce (ages 16–35) with AI-related skills and knowledge to boost employment and create a talent pool.

APA

Liaga, E. A. (2025). Advancing youth-led peacebuilding through digital technologies in Africa. Institute for Security Studies. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/pages/1762252900988-policy-brief-203.pdf

Chicago

Liaga, Emmaculate Asige. Advancing youth-led peacebuilding through digital technologies in Africa. Institute for Security Studies, 2025. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/pages/1762252900988-policy-brief-203.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Liaga |first1=Emmaculate Asige |title=Advancing youth-led peacebuilding through digital technologies in Africa |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |date=2025 |url=https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/pages/1762252900988-policy-brief-203.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{liaga2025advancing, author = {Liaga, Emmaculate Asige}, title = {{Advancing youth-led peacebuilding through digital technologies in Africa}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, year = {2025}, url = {https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/pages/1762252900988-policy-brief-203.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }