ABSTRACT
Two important related themes of this book concern the broader impact of neoliberal globalization on African youth and their agency in the context of neoliberal policies. This chapter advances aspects of these themes by investigating the life experiences of young people in Africa, especially in the area of information and communication technologies (ICTs) – a powerful and visible tool and symbol of our global village in general and neoliberal policies in particular. Particularly, the chapter examines, on the one hand, some implications of a world that is increasingly being globalized by ICTs, and on the other, ways that African youth are negotiating and can appropriate some of the opportunities and benefits that ICTs now provide. The investigation into the social, economic, political and cultural responses that neoliberal globalization has elicited from the current generation of Africa’s youth is for the most part very timely, especially in view of the fact that ICTs have had some monumental impact in shaping not just individuals but various social, economic, political and cultural institutions. 1 I therefore begin my discussion by contextualizing this new era marked by both economic and media globalization, especially as a way of setting up a broader discursive backdrop for my argument about new media technologies and the political-economic and social ramifications for African youth.
