VOA News | Sunday, January 19, 2025 
What does does the future hold for Africa’s Generation Beta?

London — Demographers say the first members of Generation Beta are being born this month, following on the heels of Millennials, Gen Z and Gen Alpha. VOA spoke with African futurists on what they think will define the lives of the continent’s Gen B’ers, from AI to better life expectancy and economic growth. Labels like Baby Boomers, Millennials or Generation Alpha are increasingly used globally to describe people born about the same time, often sharing similar experiences and challenges. VOA spoke with African futurists and scientists to understand how Gen B, who will be born between now and 2039, can expect Africa to have changed by the time they are adults. Halidou Tinto is a scientist from Burkina Faso, who is conducting cutting edge research with the recently developed malaria vaccine. He says futurists believe that people born in Africa in 2024-2025 can reasonably expect that malaria will no longer be a major public health problem in the years to come, and especially when these babies become adults. More than 200 million people in Africa catch malaria each year, and a half-million people die of it, according to the World Health Organization. Malaria is particularly deadly for children. According to UNICEF, the U.N.’s children’s agency, improvements in public health like this will lead to a brighter future for children born in coming years. Paul Quarles Van Ufford, a social policy adviser for UNICEF, says “Children born today, also, are less likely to die before their fifth birthday and one of the big progress stories in Africa, because of vaccination, management of diseases and that there is less poverty is that child mortality has reduced.” – Read more