{"id":160182,"date":"2026-04-11T16:05:01","date_gmt":"2026-04-11T16:05:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/kenya\/all-news\/ruto-africas-population-boom-could-shape-or-shake-future"},"modified":"2026-04-11T16:45:37","modified_gmt":"2026-04-11T16:45:37","slug":"ruto-africas-population-boom-could-shape-or-shake-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/kenya\/all-news\/ruto-africas-population-boom-could-shape-or-shake-future","title":{"rendered":"Ruto: Africa\u2019S Population Boom could Shape or Shake Future"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"ap-article-header-tag\"> <strong>Africa-Press &#8211; Kenya. <\/strong> <\/span>President William Ruto has said Africa stands at a critical moment in its history, urging leaders across the continent to prepare for rapid population growth, economic transformation and emerging global influence.<\/p>\n<p>Ruto said by 2050 the continent will host nearly a quarter of the world\u2019s population, positioning it as a key driver of global labour and economic activity.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAfrica is at a reflection point,\u201d said the president during the Mashariki cooperation conference in Mombasa.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBy 2050, a quarter of the world\u2019s population will be living on our continent, and that is just about 20 years from now,&#8221; he stated.<\/p>\n<p>He emphasised that the demographic shift will give Africa the largest workforce globally, presenting both opportunities and challenges for governments and institutions.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWith the Africa Continental Free Trade Area, we will have the largest single market in the world right here on this continent,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe have resources, we have assets, and we hold two-thirds of the world\u2019s remaining arable land.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ruto highlighted agriculture and natural resources as central to Africa\u2019s economic future, revealing his personal interest in farming as part of a broader push to encourage investment in the sector.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was told by the former president of the African Development Bank that the future billionaires will be farmers,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p>This, he noted, is the reason why &#8220;I am trying farming myself.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>At the same time, the President cautioned that Africa\u2019s vast mineral wealth and natural endowments could become a source of risk if not properly managed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt is both an opportunity and a risk,\u201d he warned.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Because of what I have said about our continent, there is a need for thought leaders, there is a need for intelligence leaders to think about how we are going to organise ourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ruto called for strategic planning, stronger institutions and visionary leadership to ensure the continent fully benefits from its demographic and economic potential.<\/p>\n<p>His remarks come amid growing focus on Africa\u2019s role in the global economy, as leaders push for reforms, deeper regional integration and sustainable development to harness the continent\u2019s vast opportunities.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ap-article-footer-note\">Find more news and analyses on <span class=\"ap-highlight-country\">Kenya<\/span> on the <span class=\"ap-highlight-brand\">Africa Press<\/span> website<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Africa-Press &#8211; Kenya. President William Ruto has said Africa stands at a critical moment in its history, urging leaders across the continent to prepare for rapid population growth, economic transformation and emerging global influence. Ruto said by 2050 the continent will host nearly a quarter of the world\u2019s population, positioning it as a key driver [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":160181,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,7,12],"tags":[544],"class_list":["post-160182","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-head-lines","category-policy","tag-kenya"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.1 (Yoast SEO v27.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Ruto: Africa\u2019S Population Boom could Shape or Shake Future - kenya<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"-article-header-tag&quot;&gt; Africa-Press - Kenya. 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