Presided over on January 15, 2026, by Minister Mounouna Foutsou at the Yaounde conference center, the opening ceremony of the first National Youth Forum marked the launch of a vast project of dialogue and co-construction between the State and the youth of Cameroon.
This inaugural edition of the National Youth Forum (FONAJEUN) officially opened under the High Patronage of the Head of State, President Paul Biya. The work is guided by the theme: “Cameroonian Youth: human capital with strong moral, civic, and entrepreneurial values, at the heart of the Seven-Year Term of Great Hopes of H.E. Paul BIYA, for a united, stable, and prosperous Cameroon.”
In his welcome address, the third Deputy Mayor of Yaoundé, Palalou Midjiyawa, hailed the mobilization of youth from all 10 regions and the diaspora, calling for the Forum to become a crucible for useful proposals, collective responsibility, and co-construction. FONAJEUN takes place in a context where youth represent nearly 80% of the population. As a major national resource, they face complex challenges: unemployment, precariousness, the temptation of emigration, rising incivility, and vulnerability to ideological and digital manipulation.
The Head of State has placed youth at the heart of the “Great Hopes” mandate. National strategies (SND30, Vision 2035, and the Revised National Youth Policy 2025-2030) converge toward one goal: making youth the architect, actor, and beneficiary of national development. During his inaugural lesson, Professor Leka Essomba highlighted three “obsessions” undermining today’s youth: the quest for life elsewhere, the pursuit of easy money, and an excessive attraction to the civil service over entrepreneurship. He urged for an acceleration of digital and ecological transitions to create new career paths.
Fadimatou Iyawa Ousmanou, President of the National Youth Council (CNJC), thanked the government and committed the youth to implementing the National Youth Plan with “love and patriotism.” Minister Mounouna Foutsou concluded by stating that youth are the “beating heart of the Nation.” He invited them to use the Forum to build a new pact of trust, asserting that FONAJEUN is a strategic turning point for a prosperous Cameroon.
