Youth Day message: Which other unfulfilled promises will Biya make to youth today?.

Tomorrow’s event in terms of statistics, will show that 44 of these celebrations have been under Biya’s leadership. 

Yet, Biya is not going anytime soon. This, perhaps, is what has and will continue to make his Youth Day speeches issues of debate.

Like the theme suggests, the hope of the Cameroonian youth, its place in the country, especially leadership, have been attributed to the very shakings and threat to its unity and prosperity.

Most of Biya’s critics have stayed on the lane that in over 60 years, the country’s youth have not been positioned at the heart of key projects, making any declaration of intent to do good from government doubtful.

It is within such optics that Biya is being fingered for making bold declarations across the years that have not seen the light of day. 

But aware of such critics, the President has since 2024, in most of his outings, been striking back at those who see nothing good in his leadership.

On February 10, 2025, Biya in his Youth Day message, told his critics that: “While the vast majority appreciated the sincerity of my message, some pessimists chose to focus on the fact that one thing or another had not been done, or had not yet been done, disregarding the real and verifiable constraints I mentioned”. 

It is on the strength of such constraints, which analysts say are being surmounted elsewhere and young people given their place under the sun that, the President and his men must think out of the box.

Without such an approach, they insist that like it has been across decades, no matter the promises and pledges Biya will make later today, nothing substantial will change.

Lies or unfulfilled promises?

As recent as last year, Biya made several promises, most of which have not seen the light of day in the interest of young people. 

While his supporters in the logic of a complex environment termed them unfulfilled promises, critics qualify them as lies.

Among the unfulfilled promises is the setting up of municipal youth employment offices. 

In his message to the youth on February 10, 2025, he declared that: “I have also instructed the government to fast-track the setting up of municipal employment offices, to provide optimum support for young jobseekers”.  One year on, nothing in this light has happened.

Biya, within the brackets of tackling youth unemployment in relation to other measures noted that: “I have instructed the government to establish a regulatory framework to support the recruitment of first-time jobseekers”.

While insisting then that unemployment was a general problem countries worldwide face, Biya argued that the regulatory frame work, which till date has not been put in place “is intended to provide better support to young people who have never had a job and to help them find their first job”.

Another aspect the President mentioned was: “The National Directory of Jobs, Trades and Professions”. 

He indicated that it had been established to “help to consolidate, analyse and disseminate information on available job opportunities in our country”.

But observers say the Directory ended up only in the President’s speech and has not been heard or seen performing the role the Head of State assured the young people about.

In line with adjusting training models to suit market demands, observers say there is still no noticeable shift in the design of curricular across the country’s educational strata in line with the Presidential intent.

Biya told young compatriots on February 10 last year that “the government will continue to ensure that training opportunities are as relevant as possible to actual labour market needs, to prevent many graduates ending up unemployed”.

Ghost actions in environment, climate sector?

On the same path of several instructions, he said had been given to government for which analysts say nothing has been done till date, Biya on this day last year drummed massive youth involvement in environmental protection, climate change and related sectors.

“…I have also instructed the government to involve as many young people as possible in preserving the environment and combating climate change,” he indicated.

Biya, who will clock 93 years on Friday February 13, 2026, then enthused that: “Such is the objective of the ongoing Green Jobs Promotion Programme”. 

He had said “the Programme will ultimately help to create over ten thousand jobs through income-generating activities in areas such as sanitation, waste recycling and organic farming”.

Pundits say while the capacity to create such jobs exists, there is a general breakdown in waste management, sanitation and waste recycling efforts. 

The situation alone, those monitoring Presidential policy speeches say, point to a lack in full implementation of Presidential directives.

In the health sector where the President spoke of recruiting close to 10,000 workers, it is just a few days ago that Public Service and Administrative Reform Minister, Joseph Le, signed a release for a competitive recruitment exercise for the first batch of close to 1,000 health workers.

The action comes over a year after the announcement but Biya then had said the recruitments were going to “start soonest.” 

“In the coming weeks, the contractualisation of health workers that I announced at the end of last year will be launched,” he had noted, while referring to his speech at the close of 2024.

Beyond specifics, the Head of State had also sounded positive that many government services were equally taking actions to up youth employment.

This, he added, was in addition to “…substantial financial resources… allocated each year to achieve this goal”. 

That such actions have not resulted in anything substantial on ground, analysts say, makes the President’s desire to promote youth growth appear like a lie.

Paying lip service to moral rearmament, digital opportunities?

With a separate ministry of youth issues and other moral rearmament programmes, critics say Biya’s Cameroon in 2026 is sliding into the chasm morally.

Just in recent weeks, young people have ignited buzz on social media for deviant behaviour on and off campuses. The trend, some are saying, is a microcosm of the general state of the country’s youth.

Most entrepreneurial rearmament and civic programmes, some are evoking, expand just within the borders of ceremonies and politicking.

On the opportunities of the digital economy, some youths say the potentials can’t be fully exploited, especially given the epileptic internet services.

Fresh unfulfilled promises in new mandate

Biya’s most recent criticism when it comes to the youth, is linked to the promises, he made during campaigns for the 2025 presidential election. 

He had reiterated his interest in youth and women while being sworn in on November 6, 2025. He took the firm commitment that “…my action throughout this seven-year term will focus on the situation of young people and women…”

During his traditional end-of-year address to the nation, on December 31, 2025, Biya again revisited the issue of his interest in young people, signaling he was going to give them more space in the leadership of the country.

Over two months since the election, Biya has not started fulfilling his promises. There has been no major political action from him that shows particular interest in youth as outlined during his campaign and outings during his November 6, 2025, swearing-in and December 31, 2025 end-of-year address.

Biya, on December 31, 2025, even afforded the luxury of announcing a new government “in the coming days.” He said the new government was going to be tailored to address youth challenges and absence in leadership positions. 

That again is a promise he has failed to keep. It’s more than six weeks gone already with the announced new government “in the coming days” not yet in sight. 

With the situation of things, the question on the lips of many is what other ‘lie’ will Biya be telling young people today?

Regurgitated generalities

There are also generalities which many say have across the years form part of Biya’s speeches to the youth. 

Today evening, many say they are certain he would repeat the narratives of the complexities of this age, calling for resilience, trust in his leadership, shunning of hate speech and engagement in entrepreneurial and other positive ventures.

As a political giant for decades, the President is also expected to recommit like he has often done to empower young people and a call on them to believe in the nation’s future, among other declarations that would not be new.

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3700 of Tuesday February 10, 2026