Equity Group aims for 50 million jobs by 2030 with World Bank appointment

Oluwatosin Racheal Alabi -

Key Points

  • James Mwangi has been appointed to the World Bank’s Global Jobs Council.
  • Mwangi aims for 50 million jobs in Africa by 2030.
  • Equity Group sees a leadership shift to younger management.

James Mwangi, CEO of Equity Group Holdings, has been appointed to the World Bank’s High-Level Advisory Council on Jobs. The council, established to address the global job creation crisis, will focus particularly on youth and women in emerging economies. Mwangi’s appointment, announced during the 2024 World Bank Group-IMF Annual Meeting, signals a significant step toward addressing rising unemployment, particularly in regions like Africa where job creation has struggled to keep pace with population growth.

Mwangi’s plan to create 50 million jobs in Africa by 2030

Mwangi has committed to leveraging his new role on the council to create 50 million jobs across Africa by 2030. He emphasized the continent’s changing demographic landscape, with one in four people globally expected to be African and over a third of the world’s youth residing there by the end of this decade. This presents both challenges and opportunities, and Mwangi believes that Africa’s economic future hinges on creating jobs for its young population.

His vision aligns with Equity Group’s Africa Recovery and Resilience Plan, which focuses on empowering youth and women to achieve economic independence and combat unemployment. The bank’s success in the market, underscored by the impressive growth of its stock and financial position in 2024, highlights the potential for further positive economic impact across the continent.

The World Bank’s High-Level Advisory Council, co-chaired by Tharman Shanmugaratnam, President of Singapore, and Michelle Bachelet, former President of Chile, includes 14 distinguished leaders from business, academia, and policy sectors. The council’s primary goal is to develop innovative solutions to the unemployment crisis in the Global South. The challenge is significant, with an estimated 1.2 billion young adults expected to join the global workforce over the next decade, while only 420 million jobs are projected to be available.

Equity Group transitions leadership as Mwangi takes on new role

At the same time, Mwangi announced that Equity Group has successfully transitioned to a new generation of leadership, with a majority of the management team now under 45 years old. This reflects the firm’s focus on long-term growth and succession planning. Although Mwangi will continue to lead the company’s investment arm, he has expressed openness to stepping down from his current role as CEO if shareholders feel the business is ready for a new leader.