Kenya’s Gen Z inspires youth-led protests across Africa, putting leaders in Nigeria, Uganda in panic mode

From Nigeria to Uganda, leaders from across Africa are watching closely the youth-led anti-government protests in Kenya that, according to experts, could inspire youth across the continent.
Kenyan President William Ruto on Friday (19 July) appointed the first 11 members of his new cabinet, but he has yet to appoint a finance minister, under whose area of responsibility the contentious budget falls. Last week, Ruto dismissed all but one minister following deadly demonstrations calling for legislators to vote against a finance bill that was proposing new taxes. As the youth-led protests in Kenya later morphed to calls for Ruto’s resignation over bad governance, political experts say these demands for the government to take immediate action against issues that have plagued society, including corruption, could have ripple effects across Africa.
Should leaders on the continent not address citizens’ concerns, Kenya’s recent anti-tax protests are likely to further reverberate across the continent, triggering a renewal of nationalism among youth, while sending cold chills down the spine of leaders from Kenya to Malawi to Uganda, accused of bad governance. Drawing inspiration from the protests in Kenya, some Nigerian youths have already finalized plans to hold nationwide protests against widespread hunger and insecurity, especially in northern Nigeria, in the coming weeks, which has put President Bola Tinubu’s administration in panic mode. Meanwhile, Uganda’s president, Yoweri Museveni, has issued a stern warning as the country’s youths have announced an anti-corruption demonstration scheduled for this month.