Max Amanu

Max Amanu is a Development Economist, Youth Empowerment Strategist, and Education Advocate, dedicated to empowering young people to become active agents of positive change through advancing access to quality education and championing youth participation in public life.

He is the Co-Founder of Northwind Foundation, a nonprofit organization that empowers youth from low-income backgrounds in Uganda through access to free education and employability skills training.

Max is currently the Regional Director for Africa at Changing-lives Switzerland, Thematic Lead for Education and Employability at the Queen Elizabeth II Commonwealth Trust (QECT), and AFS Youth Assembly Advisory Council Member.

His work focuses on enabling positive youth development and fostering international development through research, skills development, youth engagement, and project/program management. He is particularly passionate about empowering underprivileged youth from low-income backgrounds through access to quality education and skills, aiming to reduce inequality, youth unemployment, and poverty. Max advises a range of organizations, including the United Nations, on mainstreaming meaningful and impactful youth participation and engagement in policy and decision-making.

He also serves as a Member of the UNODC’s YouthLED Integrity Advisory Board to the Global Resource for Anti-Corruption Education and Youth Empowerment (GRACE) Initiative and a Co-Chair for the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) & Future-Proof Skills for Dignified Work Thematic Area Working Group of UNESCO’s SDG4 Youth & Student Network.

Max actively contributes to other global issues such as peace, anti-corruption, development, global citizenship, financing and sustainability, through his involvement in various organizations, youth-led platforms and initiatives, including the Chatham House’s Common Futures Conversations Community, and the Youth Network on Beyond GDP, a “sounding board” for the UN Secretary-General’s Independent High-Level Expert Group on Beyond GDP.

His work bridges education and employability, ensuring that no young person is left behind because of income level, social background, or perceived intellectual ability.