The Youth Climate Ambassador, Nigeria, Kayinajah Inyang, has called for a fundamental shift in the global inclusion of young people.

He made the call at a closing side event on youth empowerment, at the World Economic Forum (WEF) convened from January 19 to 23 in Davos. At the event, world leaders from government and industry met to navigate a fractured geopolitical landscape.

Speaking at the event with the theme, “A Spirit of Dialogue,” Inyang said: “The youths demand more, we have spent years in the ‘Spirit of Dialogue,’ but dialogue without seats at the table is just performance. Young people need more seats at the table where the actual decisions are made…Dialogue is a tool, not a result. We are tired of being invited to share our ‘stories’ while the actual decisions and the budgets are handled behind closed doors. Looking around this room, there need to be more young people like me here, speaking for themselves because you cannot design a future for us, without us.”

The Ambassador linked the lack of representation directly to the slow pace of climate action and technological equity. Inyang emphasized that for Nigeria and the broader African continent, climate change is not a future threat but a current driver of conflict and economic displacement.

The Youth Climate Ambassador, popular for work in helping environmental and climate tech firms secure vital climate finance funding for their projects, called for a massive increase in funding specifically earmarked for youth-led adaptation projects, moving beyond traditional loans that further burden developing economies.

“We are seeing a green industrial revolution begin in Africa, but it is being starved of the oxygen it needs: funding, funding & funding. We are not just asking for charity, we are asking for investment in the most innovative and resilient workforce on the planet. We need real actions in the form of climate finance that prioritizes youth-led tech development. It is not enough to discuss ‘innovation’ in Davos while young entrepreneurs in Abuja or Nairobi or Cairo or Johannesburg are locked out of the global financial system. We demand an equitable distribution of resources to ensure that the next generation of climate solutions is born and scaled in Africa and the global south at large.”

Inyang’s appearance at Davos marks his fourth consecutive year participating in the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum. Recently named as one of “African Environmentalists to Watch in 2026” by Forbes, Kayinajah Inyang has a consistent representative of the African youth voice. A large bulk of his experience comes from the United Nations Climate Change Conference of Parties (COP) framework, where he has over half a decade of experience and has advocated for transparency and accountability in global climate pledges while trying to “move the money.”