Africa's Next Wave: How Youth and Tech Are Changing the Game

Fujimoto Masaru

In the lead up to the 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD9) in August 2025, JICA is sharing a series of stories that explore Africa’s challenges and promise. While showcasing JICA’s contributions, the series also brings attention to the broader efforts, ideas and potential across the continent. This instalment focuses on youth and culture.

Africa is rising, and the world is starting to take notice. Home to more than 1.4 billion people across 54 countries, which is roughly the same as the combined populations of 68 nations across North America (including Central America and the Caribbean), Europe and Japan, the continent is undergoing a powerful transformation driven by its youthful population, fast-growing cities, and a surge in digital connectivity. From Lagos to Cape Town, a new generation of creators, entrepreneurs, and innovators is shaping global trends in music, film, fashion, and tech.

Afrobeat artists are topping global charts with billions of streams. African designers are blending tradition with contemporary style and exporting bold, colourful creations to international markets through online platforms. Films from Nollywood, Africa’s bustling film industry, are no longer just local hits. They are reaching audiences worldwide through streaming services like Netflix.

What sets Africa apart is its youth. Around 70 percent of the population is under 30, making it one of the youngest regions in the world. This youthful energy is driving a cultural and economic boom. In the coastal city of Mombasa, Kenya, Maeda Chiho, a travel agency owner from Japan,

notes how different daily life feels from back home, commenting on how striking it is to see so many young people so frequently. In contrast to aging societies in places like Japan and Europe, many African countries are embracing a future shaped by children and young adults.

Africa's economic potential is also coming into sharper focus. According to the African Development Bank, the continent saw real GDP growth of 3.0 percent in 2023, with projections rising to 4.4 percent by 2026. Sub-Saharan Africa alone is expected to post a solid 3.8 percent growth in 2024, according to The Economic Survey 2025, Kenya’s latest national economic survey.

And while Africa still faces significant challenges, some of its economies are gaining ground globally. In the International Monetary Fund's 2025 GDP rankings, South Africa now ranks 40th, just ahead of Romania and the Czech Republic. Nigeria and Kenya are also climbing the ranks, reflecting their growing influence on the world stage.

Social media, especially TikTok, is playing a powerful role in shaping Africa’s fashion scene. From styling tutorials to live-streamed sales, TikTok is becoming a go-to space where influencers showcase the latest looks and young entrepreneurs sell clothes and accessories directly to viewers.

JICA staff Ikewada Sako, 25, was posted to the agency office in Abidjan, the economic capital of Côte d'Ivoire in West Africa, for three months starting November 2023. During her assignment, her work encompassed diverse initiatives in governance, infrastructure and industry, including rice cultivation, fish farming, and educational support. Despite her short stay, Ikewada said she witnessed firsthand the steady rise of the middle class in a rapidly developing Africa, where growing affluence was helping fuel the emergence of vibrant, youth-driven cultures across the continent.

Ikewada says she saw how improved financial comfort allowed "more people to spend both time and money on fashion."

According to ANZA, a platform that supports Japanese companies entering the African market, several factors are fueling this shift: growing internet access, advancements in digital technology, and the lifestyle changes brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, fashion businesses across the continent are going digital, and consumers are following suit.

Fashion e-commerce in Africa is expected to generate $19.8 billion (about ¥2.88 trillion) in 2024. While this market size is dwarfed by Asia’s $520.93 billion (about ¥74.6 trillion), ANZA notes that rising global demand for African fashion design is driving growth: “The African market is increasingly under the spotlight.”

Beyond TikTok, more shoppers are turning to platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Temu, Amazon, and Nigeria’s own Jumia for fashion purchases. Most access these services via smartphones, not personal computers, which remain out of reach for many due to cost.

According to the GSM Association which represents a group of mobile network operators and other similar companies, smartphone ownership in sub-Saharan Africa reached 64% in the second half of 2021 and is projected to rise to 75% by the end of this year, with a further increase to 88% by 2030, according to JETRO.

Recognising this opportunity, other international fast fashion brands like H&M and Zara have entered the African market, promoting styles that incorporate local textiles and cultural aesthetics.

Reflecting on her time in Côte d’Ivoire, Ikewada noted that the region is known for its bold prints, while countries like South Africa and Mozambique tend to favour a more refined and minimalist fashion.

Despite cotton being Africa’s main textile material, Ikewada pointed out that much of it is processed in Europe, particularly in the Netherlands and Belgium. “Very few materials are actually made in Africa,” she said. Although traditional dyeing exists in certain areas, most of the fabric is imported.

Mass production remains rare. Most garments are handmade or tailored locally, a testament to the region’s strong culture of craftsmanship. However, business attire is becoming more Westernized. “In the office, men and women commonly wear suits,” said Ikewada. “Traditional dress is gradually fading from daily life.” Similarly, Maeda, who lives in Kenya, observed that people there usually dress much like the Japanese, who usually wear western clothing and where traditional clothing is reserved for special occasions.

In West Africa, however, and especially in Nigeria, traditional fashion is enjoying a modern revival. Frances Chinwe Anieheobi, 30, a Nigerian government employee now studying in Tokushima Prefecture, Japan, explained that “fashion is our identity now. It’s about who we are, where we come from, what we express, and what we love.”

Anieheobi, who is from the Igbo ethnic group, prefers garments featuring lion motifs, the symbol of her tribe. “Wearing these clothes helps me express my roots,” she said.

Many young Africans are now embracing a fusion of Western trends and cultural heritage, creating a unique, hybrid aesthetic. Designers like Lisa Folawiyo, who has showrooms in Nigerian and New York and has been featured in Vogue Italia, and VeeKee James who won Best Designer in 2022 at the African continent’s equivalent of the Oscars, are at the forefront of this movement. Their work combines traditional West African textiles like Ankara wax prints with modern silhouettes, detailed beading, and sequin embellishments.

“Many African designers are mastering the art of blending Western styles with African fabrics,” said Anieheobi. “There’s a new confidence—people wear African fashion not just with pride, but with a deeper sense of self.”

One of the most dynamic cultural forces coming out of Africa today, however, is its music industry. Afrobeat, a genre that blends traditional African rhythms with contemporary sounds, has launched many young talents onto the world stage. One example is Rema, a 25-year-old Nigerian artist who collaborated with American singer Selena Gomez on the 2022 global hit "Calm Down." He became the first African artist to reach 1 billion streams on Spotify.

Another standout Nigerian artist, Wizkid, 34, has also captivated global music fans. As a singer-songwriter influenced by hip-hop and reggae, he is widely regarded as a leader of the new generation of Afrobeat.

From Ghana comes the smash hit "Shake It to the Max," a collaboration between singer-songwriter Moliy and rapper Silent Addy. The song, with English lyrics and a rap style, has topped the African music ranking in the UK, the "UK Afrobeat Chart," for 11 consecutive weeks since March 2025.

And much of Nigeria’s music, a driving force behind youth culture across the continent, gains global reach, again, thanks to platforms like TikTok. The number of young people posting dance videos to these hit songs is soaring. One popular video, featuring a female influencer dancing alongside children in Uganda, has amassed over 6 million views, inspiring countless similar clips from youth across Africa.

When discussing modern African culture, the film industry must not be forgotten. Nigeria’s "Nollywood" stands alongside Hollywood and Bollywood as one of the world’s three major film industries. Just as Bollywood combines “Bombay” and “Hollywood,” Nollywood takes the “N” from Nigeria and pairs it with Hollywood to create its name.

While it doesn’t rival the North American market—where box office revenue hit $8.75 billion (about ¥1.27 trillion) in 2024—Nollywood impressively produces around 2,000 films annually, most on modest budgets. Its annual box office revenue is estimated between $500 million and $1 billion (roughly ¥72.8 billion to ¥145.6 billion).

Nollywood films often tackle pressing social issues such as human trafficking and drug addiction amid poverty, yet they are distinct for frequently concluding with hopeful, happy endings.

Recent popular titles include the action-packed Gangs of Lagos (2023), Endangered Species (2021), a gripping tale set in the savanna about escaping ruthless poachers, and Rafiki (2018), the first Kenyan film to be screened at the Cannes Film Festival.

On the African continent, even here, the industry is shaped by the digital demand. JICA official Ikewada noted that most people in Africa watch films at home via streaming services rather than in theaters. While cinemas exist in cities, she explained, "the general public, especially in rural areas, are not accustomed to going to the movies." Instead, “even children watch films on their smartphones,” highlighting how video streaming has become the mainstream way to enjoy film across the continent.

Many of these films are now accessible in Japan and other countries through streaming platforms like Amazon Prime Video, U-Next, and Hulu, making Nollywood’s vibrant storytelling available worldwide.