The Secretary General of the United Nations recently warned that without more investment, gender equality will take another 300 years.  And there continues to be an urgent need for skills training for growing youth populations.  Ensuring young women and women have access to good quality skills training is a matter of their human rights.  We also need their creativity and initiative in societies and globally as a matter of our development and survival.

Our panelists

Ivy Mwai, Education and Skills Lead – The Mastercard Foundation, Kenya

Ivy Mwai currently leads Mastercard Foundation’s Young Africa Works Workforce Development Programs in Kenya. These Programs focus on finding solutions to the youth employment challenge and reducing poverty in Africa.  She has held executive positions at Equity Group Foundation, the African Leadership Academy in South Africa and McCann Erickson Advertising Agency. She has a passion for furthering the education of the girl-child through her association with Starehe Girls School and The Old Limuru Girls Association, which she chaired for four years.    She published the first East African children’s magazine, Maneno Magazine.  She is a Life Member of the Kenya Red Cross Society.

Borhene Chakroun, Director of Policies and Lifelong Learning Systems Division – UNESCO 

Borhene Chakroun has worked as a trainer, chief trainer, project manager and consultant for organizations such as the European Union and the World Bank before joining the European Training Foundation in 2001 where he was the Senior Human Capital Development specialist. He is now Director of Policies and Lifelong Learning Systems Division at UNESCO-HQ, where much of his recent work has focused on global trends in reforming education and training systems and on developing the global agenda for skills development in the context of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda. He is also the coordinator of the Global Education Coalition launched by UNESCO to respond to the COVID-19 crisis. He has authored and co-authored various articles and books in the field of skills development and lifelong learning.

Marcel Lebleu, Director General for West and Central Africa – Global Affairs Canada

Marcel Lebleu is a career diplomat. Following postings in Cameroon, Costa Rica, Argentina and Spain, he was appointed Ambassador of Canada to Chile in 2015. In 2017, he was appointed Canada’s Ambassador to Colombia where he served until 2021. Since his return to Canada, he has served as Director General for West and Central Africa at the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development (Global Affairs Canada).