4th Edition of the Youth Green Caravan: The Executive Secretary of the PAGGW Calls on African Youth to Commit to the Future of the Great Green Wall

Niamey, 26 January 2026 – The Nigerien capital hosted, on this day, the official launch ceremony of the fourth edition of the Youth Green Caravan of the Great Green Wall, a major pan-African event placed under the banner of African youth’s commitment to land restoration, environmental protection and food sovereignty.

Speaking at this ceremony, Mr Almoustapha Garba, the new Executive Secretary of the Pan-African Agency of the Great Green Wall (PAGGW), commended the leadership and the steadfast commitment of the Nigerien authorities to the implementation of the Great Green Wall Initiative. He expressed the Agency’s gratitude for the warm welcome extended to the delegations from the eleven member countries, underscoring Niger’s strategic role in the fight against desertification and climate change in the Sahel.
In his address, the Executive Secretary recalled that the Great Green Wall goes beyond the scope of a mere environmental project. It constitutes, in his view, a political, economic and social vision carried by Africa, aimed at providing African responses to the major challenges of land degradation, food insecurity, poverty and forced migration.

“Through land restoration and the creation of local economic opportunities, the Great Green Wall is a strategic lever for transforming the Sahelian and Saharan zones into spaces of production, life and hope,” he stated.
At the heart of this vision, African youth occupy a central place. Addressing the young caravanners, Mr Almoustapha Garba urged them to fully assume their role as builders of the Africa of tomorrow. He commended their mobilisation through the Green Caravan, a strong symbol of a pan-African youth united across borders, aware of environmental issues and determined to act collectively for a sustainable future.
The Youth Green Caravan thus stands as a privileged framework for awareness-raising, dialogue, training and fellowship, fostering the emergence of local initiatives led by young people in the fields of ecosystem restoration, green entrepreneurship and the sustainable governance of territories. 

Reaffirming the PAGGW’s commitment alongside member States, technical and financial partners and local communities, the Executive Secretary stressed the need to invest more in the training, innovation and economic empowerment of young people to ensure the lasting success of the Initiative.

In conclusion, he invoked the ideals of pan-Africanism, citing the famous appeal of Kwame Nkrumah: “Africa must unite or perish,” recalling that the Green Caravan concretely embodies this African unity in the service of sustainable development and the resilience of the continent.
With this fourth edition launched in Niamey, the Youth Green Caravan confirms its role as a catalyst for civic engagement and collective mobilisation in favour of the Great Green Wall and of an Africa that stands tall, united and resolutely turned towards the future.