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Podcast

The Youth Bloom

By 2050, one in four people on the planet will be African. By the same year, one in every three young people in the world will be African. This is often described as Africa’s youth boom.
 

Africa will increasingly drive key aspects of the future, from the global workforce and cutting-edge innovations to creative industries that inspire global culture and arts. The decisions made across Africa today, both positive and negative, will shape the world’s future.
 

On the Youth Bloom, we explore the stories, the trends, and the challenges shaping the present and defining the decades ahead.
 

The Youth Bloom is hosted by Catherine Nzuki and produced by Gina Kim.

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All The Youth Bloom Podcast Episodes

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The Youth Bloom

There’s more African content on streaming. Who’s it for?

Catherine Nzuki is joined by Dr. Wunpini Fatimata Mohammed to discuss the rise of New Nollywood, the politics of representation, and what’s lost when African stories are tailored for a global audience.

Podcast Episode by Catherine Nzuki — July 3, 2025

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The Youth Bloom

The development sector has changed irrevocably. What comes next?

Catherine Nzuki is joined by Blair Glencorse and Cheri-Leigh Erasmus, co-CEOs of Accountability Lab, to discuss the current state of the development sector and where the development sector goes from here.

 

Podcast Episode by Catherine Nzuki — June 12, 2025

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The Youth Bloom

Cameron Hudson on the internationalization of the Sudan war

Catherine Nzuki is joined by Cameron Hudson, Senior Fellow with the CSIS Africa Program. He unpacks the immediate causes of the war, the growing number of regional actors involved, and the unique role the U.S. can play in mediating a peace process.

Podcast Episode by Catherine Nzuki and Cameron Hudson — May 29, 2025

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The Youth Bloom

Understanding the case for the Africa Credit Rating Agency

Catherine Nzuki is joined by Dr. Daniel Cash to discuss the impact that sovereign credit ratings have on outcomes for young people, why the Africa Credit Rating Agency (AfCRA) is being formed, and why it is important to champion this initiative.

Podcast Episode by Catherine Nzuki — May 15, 2025

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The Youth Bloom

The Afropolitan is now the Youth Bloom podcast!

But not much else has changed: Catherine Nzuki is (still) your host, and by 2050, one in four people in the world are still expected to be African. Thank you all very much for supporting this podcast.

Podcast Episode by Catherine Nzuki — May 13, 2025

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The Youth Bloom

The new Alliance of Sahel States and the future of Africa’s legacy institutions

Why have Mali, Nigher, and Burkina Faso exited the Economic Community of West African States? Catherine Nzuki is joined by Beverly Ochieng, Senior Analyst for Francophone Africa at Control Risks, and a Senior Associate with the CSIS Africa Program, to unpack this question and more.

Podcast Episode by Catherine Nzuki and Beverly Ochieng — March 6, 2025

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The Youth Bloom

DeepSeek’s AI is cheap. Is this a game-changer for African startups?

Catherine Nzuki is joined by Dr. Chinasa T. Okolo, a fellow in the Center for Technology Innovation in the Governance Studies program at Brookings and a recent computer science Ph.D. graduate from Cornell University.

Podcast Episode by Catherine Nzuki — February 20, 2025

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The Youth Bloom

The fallout of the U.S. aid freeze in Washington, Abuja, and beyond

Catherine Nzuki is joined by Andrew Friedman, Senior Fellow with the CSIS Human Rights Initiative, and Samuel Itodo, Executive Director of Yiaga Africa, to discuss the impacts of the U.S. aid freeze and the future of foreign aid in Africa.

Podcast Episode by Catherine Nzuki and Andrew Friedman — February 6, 2025

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