Former president Jakaya Kikwete has revealed how his leadership was pro-youth.
He said during his tenure he appointed young people in deliberate efforts to groom them for higher positions.
"If one is appointed a district commissioner, he or she is expected to deliver so as to become material for the regional commissioner post", he said.
The same case was for the deputy minister who should prepare for the full ministerial post.
The former Head of State disclosed this in Arusha on Monday when he graced the opening of the Fifth East African Youth Leadership Summit.
Mr. Kikwete, who served as fifth phase president from 2005 to 2015, emphasized that youth should be groomed for higher positions.
He recalled how the current Arusha regional commissioner John Mongela rose from a party youth leader to the position.
"He was an ordinary youth league member. I identified his potential and appointed him the DC and later to this position", he said.
Mr. Mongela, one of the last surviving RCs from the previous governments, was seated close to the former president at the Arusha International Conference Centre's Simba Hall.
He said his administration was characterized by young men and women leaders because he wanted to empower them for higher positions.
He called on the EAC partner states to place the youth at the centre stage of the integration efforts given their numerical strength.
According to him, 65 percent of the East African population is under 30 years old, saying with full support, they are going to have a positive impact.
Mr. Kikwete, however, cautioned that without proper education and requisite skills, the EA youth will remain doomed.
"When our youth miss out on gaining those skills, the region will lose equitable economic growth and development", he said.
That was why the Global Partnership for Education, which he chairs, has partnered with 41 African countries to transform the education systems.
President Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya said concerted efforts should be made to unlock the potential of the youth.
This will not only enable the East African Community (EAC) region to expand its productive workforce and promote entrepreneurship.
His speech to the hybrid summit was read on his behalf by his cabinet secretary for EAC Mr. Adan Mohamed.
Mr. Kenyatta, who is the current EAC Chair, emphasized that the youth have to be at the forefront of cutting edge technologies.
EAC Secretary General Peter Mathuki, said in East Africa, youth will form 75 percent of the population by 2030.
“Now is the right time to invest in young people, promote dialogue and understanding across cultures and generations", he said.
The YouLead Summit 2021, themed “The Future of Africa: Creating Jobs, Feeding, and Housing the World’s Youngest Continent” is East Africa’s largest and most diverse forum of young leaders across multiple sectors.
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