Former President of the United States, Barack Obama has announced that what he will be doing in his post-presidential life is to help the next generation get active in politics.

Obama made the announcement at a panel hosted by the University of Chicago – his first public event since Donald Trump become President.

“There’s a reason why I’m always optimistic, even when things aren’t necessarily going the way I want, and that is because of young people like this,” Mr Obama said, gesturing to the young adults who joined him on the panel.

Obama said he considered working on numerous issues after leaving office, but chose to invest in the leadership of the next generation. He argued that too few Americans participate in politics currently, claiming US elections see the “lowest voting rates of any developed democracy”.

Mr Obama attributed that disinterest to various issues, from the polarisation of political parties to the dominance of special interests. He realised, he said on Monday, that “the only folks who are going to be able to solve that are young people.”