Fit for the Future: How a Rethink of the Human Capital Model is Needed in Africa to Optimise the Return on Social Spending

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UNICEF’s new Policy Note for Africa highlights that current social spending on children and youth is not allocated equitably by age. While G20 countries spread social spending throughout a child’s life, African governments prioritise older children while neglecting young ones. This suggests there is a need to rethink the approach to building human capital in Africa, since investing mostly in later years, without building on a foundation in the early years, will be inefficient and not yield the necessary results for the continent.