By Doug Woolley, General Manager Dell Technologies South Africa

The future for the youth population was, unsurprisingly, a key focus at Davos 2023 as policymakers and businesses work to recover from recent unexpected challenges. Ongoing issues like the climate crisis, combined with the pandemic and more recent economic uncertainty have focused minds on how best to create resilient economies for the future.

Enter Generation Z: those born between 1997-2012. This group will make up the largest proportion of the global workforce by 2025. It will be critical in navigating the economic, geopolitical and environmental landscapes ahead. To understand their views on key topics like investment priorities, digital healthcare and digital skills, Dell’s Future Proof report[1] surveyed 15,000 Gen Z adults (aged 18-26) globally. Encouragingly, it found that nearly half (47%) are willing to accept limiting their country’s shorter term economic health, like lower real GDP growth, for investment in a longer-term strategy that addresses environmental sustainability.

At the same time, however, their confidence in governments’ ability to deliver a digital-first, resilient global economy is in the balance. Globally, 33% have low or no confidence.

To gain Gen Z’s trust and secure our collective future prosperity, there needs to be a combined effort now across government, education and the private sector to invest in the infrastructure and skills that will underpin tomorrow’s digital-first economies.

Investing in a sustainable future

No matter where you live, the reality of the climate crisis is always present. Gen Z will bear the brunt of the action we take on climate change and has a clear message: technology must play a central role. Almost two-thirds of respondents (64%) said that technology will play an important role in the fight against climate change.

They also recognise the importance of investing in the infrastructure that will underpin more sustainable solutions. More than 40% of respondents said that investment in infrastructures for sustainable energy, transport, IT and communications was one of the most important actions their governments should take between now and 2026.

Many governments are already setting long-term funding pledges for the technology and science sectors centred on how they can help climate change. For example, the UK government recently pledged £900 million in investment for a new exascale computer that, among other objectives, will allow researchers to understand and respond to climate change.

Revolutionising healthcare access

Unsurprisingly given the events of the last four years, health is another key priority among Gen Z globally. Almost half (46%) of respondents said that improving healthcare services was the number one priority for government recovery spending between now and 2025.

The pandemic accelerated the rollout of digital healthcare solutions, with countries introducing telehealth solutions when face-to-face consultations had to stop overnight. The global telehealth industry is now forecast to see exponential growth, with some predicting it will hit upwards of $800bn globally in the next decade. At the same time, however, Gen Z respondents feel there is more providers could do. For example, 38% said long waiting times for appointments had caused them to put off making a health appointment in the past two years.

Pressures on access will increase as populations continue to grow. To safeguard these healthcare infrastructures, we must therefore redouble efforts to roll out secure, accessible digital healthcare solutions.

Plugging the skills gap

Responses from Gen Z on topics like the importance of digital skills for their current and planned careers suggests we should do more to equip current and future generations. Despite three-quarters (76%) of Gen Z adults stating that learning new digital skills is essential to making sure they have plenty of career options and secure continuous employment in the future, almost half (44%) said their school only taught them very basic computing skills. Worryingly, one in ten (12%) said that they did not receive any education in technology or digital skills at all.

Asked about ways to address this issue, over a third (38%) recommended a collective response from governments, policymakers and education providers to bridge the digital skills gap. This cannot be a one-and-done moment, either. Curricula and training courses must be updated to keep pace with the rate of technological innovation.

As we saw in Davos, we are all facing evolving challenges. Gen Z’s feedback shows that if we make the right choices and build trust, our youngest generations see the value of investing today for a more resilient and prosperous future. If we act collectively and decisively, we can address these pressing issues and set our societies up for success.

[1] Dell’s Future Proof report surveyed 15,000 respondents aged between 18-26 across 15 international locations: Australia, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Singapore, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, UK, Brazil, Mexico and North America (Canada, US)