Background: The Africa CDC Youth Pre-Conference (YPC) is an annual event organized by the Africa CDC, held alongside the International Conference on Public Health in Africa (CPHIA). It gathers young public health professionals from across Africa and the diaspora, offering them a platform to network with leading health experts, exchange ideas on pressing health issues, and present their contributions to a continental audience.

The previous YPC events in 2022 and 2023 centered around the themes "Meaningful Youth Engagement for Advancing Sustainable Health Security in Africa" and "Youth Leadership for a Safer and Healthier Africa," respectively. YPC 2023 saw participation from over 250 youth delegates representing 48 African Union Member States. This event facilitated engagement with high-level officials and public health experts, conducted small group workshops on selected themes, and featured co-creation sessions for Africa CDC’s Strategy for Youth Engagement and Participation in Global Health and the Bingwa Initiative 2.0.

The Africa CDC is excited to announce the 2024 Youth Pre-Conference (YPC 2024), which will take place in person from November 23-24, 2024, in Rabat, Morocco, under the theme “Amplifying Youth Voices: Youth Shaping Health Policy, Practice, and Research in Africa.” This event aims to (1) highlight the significant contributions young Africans are making in health policy, practice, and research, and (2) explore ways to enhance and empower these young leaders to revolutionize the health sector across Africa.

YPC 2024 will feature six focus areas where youth are already making significant strides:
- Youth and Digital Health Innovations
- Empowering Youth: Workforce/Talent Development for Job Opportunities
- Youth for the Advancement of Local Pharmaceutical Manufacturing
- Youth Championing Reproductive Health and HIV/AIDS
- Youth Health Advocates supporting Community Health Workers' activities and Programs
- Youth and One Health for a Healthier Future

General Objective:
As Africa CDC navigates the intricate public health landscape, meaningful youth engagement stands as a key strategy. YPC 2024 seeks to foster youth advocacy, active participation, and inclusive leadership in public health across Africa. It also aims to educate and empower youth to make informed decisions, contributing to strengthening the continent's health security (UHC) and offering a platform for young people to present their contributions to health policy, practice, and research.

Specific Objectives
- Evaluate current levels, scope, and types of youth engagement in policy, practice, and research.
- Offer insights into improving and expanding youth engagement within the Africa CDC Strategy for Youth Engagement and Participation in Global Health.
- Highlight the contributions of Africa's youth to public health policy, practice, and research, and discuss ways to enhance their capacities.
- Showcase youth innovations and contributions to shaping public health policy, practice, and research.
- Emphasize the importance of increasing youth enrollment in Community Health Worker Programs as a means to address disease outbreaks and reduce youth unemployment.
- Identify aspects of Universal Health Coverage and health security where young people can play a leading role to ensure effective implementation.

Dates, Venue, Proposed Framework:
The 2024 Africa CDC Youth Pre-Conference will be held in person from November 23-24, 2024, in Rabat, Morocco. The event will include:
- Plenary sessions and keynotes by high-profile individuals.
- Parallel sessions and workshops in various formats to encourage broad participation.
- Oral and poster presentations of youth-led or youth-focused research and projects.
- Networking opportunities.