The AI Futures for Youth Initiative (AFYI) is a flagship youth economic empowerment program led by Hands of Mercy International (HoM). The initiative is designed to equip young people in Africa and Asia with the skills, capital, and ethical grounding needed to participate meaningfully in the artificial intelligence (AI) economy—not merely as users, but as creators, entrepreneurs, and investors.
As artificial intelligence rapidly reshapes global economies, labor markets, and social systems, young people in low- and middle-income countries face a growing risk of exclusion. AFYI responds to this challenge by deliberately placing underserved youth at the center of the AI revolution, ensuring they are prepared to access opportunities, create livelihoods, and contribute to inclusive, ethical technological growth.
Since its launch, the program has reached over 10,000 young people across Africa and Asia and continues to expand through strategic partnerships with global and regional technology companies.
Across many countries in Africa and Asia, youth unemployment and underemployment remain persistent challenges. At the same time, AI is transforming sectors such as agriculture, healthcare, finance, education, logistics, and creative industries. Without targeted intervention, these shifts risk widening existing inequalities.
HoM recognized early that AI literacy alone is not enough. Young people need:
AFYI was therefore designed as a blended learning-and-investment model, combining technical training with economic empowerment and values-based leadership.
The AI Futures for Youth Initiative currently operates across multiple countries in Africa and Asia, including:
Through this multi-country footprint, AFYI reflects HoM’s commitment to global equity in emerging technologies, ensuring that youth from diverse cultural, religious, and socio-economic backgrounds can participate in shaping the future.
AFYI is structured around four interconnected pillars:
Youth participants receive structured learning opportunities tailored to their context and skill level, including:
Training is delivered through a mix of online platforms, local learning hubs, mentorship sessions, and peer-to-peer learning communities.
AFYI supports young people to translate skills into economic opportunity by:
Participants are supported to move from learning to earning, positioning AI as a tool for livelihood creation rather than abstraction.
A defining feature of AFYI is its youth investment model. HoM provides:
To date, Hands of Mercy International has invested over USD 125,000 directly into youth learning, innovation, and AI-related economic activities.
Rooted in HoM’s faith-based mission, AFYI integrates strong emphasis on:
Youth are encouraged to see themselves not only as technologists, but as ethical leaders shaping technology for the common good.
AFYI is expanding rapidly through collaboration with global and regional technology companies, innovation hubs, and impact investors. Together with these partners, over USD 10 million is being mobilized to:
These partnerships amplify HoM’s reach while ensuring that youth benefit from industry-relevant knowledge and real economic pathways.
Since inception, the AI Futures for Youth Initiative has achieved the following outcomes:
Beyond numbers, AFYI has helped shift mindsets—positioning young people not as passive recipients of aid, but as active contributors to the digital economy.
As AI continues to shape the global future, Hands of Mercy International is committed to scaling AFYI into a pan-continental youth empowerment platform. Future priorities include:
Through AFYI, HoM envisions a future where young people from Africa and Asia are not left behind by artificial intelligence—but are leading its ethical, inclusive, and transformative use.
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