The Second Lady of the Republic of Ghana, H.E. Hajia Samira Bawumia who graced the observation of the International Youth Day as it’s keynote speaker has reiterated the importance of the youth in the development of the nation.
The theme of this year’s International Youth Day, “Youth Engagement for Global Action” seeks to highlight the ways in which the engagement of young people at the local, national and global levels is enriching national and multilateral institutions and processes, as well as draw lessons on how their representation and engagement in formal institutional politics can be significantly enhanced.
This underlined the observation of the International youth day by the National Youth Authority (NYA) under the local theme “Youth Engagement in Mitigating the Impact of Covid-19: The Need for Innovation and Creativity.”
Speaking on the theme, H.E. Hajia Samira Bawumia encouraged the youth “to turn obstacles into opportunities, get ahead of challenges and be innovative.” She added that the youth shouldn’t allow setbacks to deter them from the achievement of their goals
“Remember to celebrate all your successes as you go ahead. The Success of the nation depends on the development of the youth.”
H.E. Hajia Samira Bawumia
H.E. Hajia Samira Bawumia also commended the NYA on the organization of dialogue sessions with the youth to deliberate on innovate ways to develop the nation hoping the sessions will be documented to inform future policy formulations.
In 1999, the UN General Assembly endorsed the recommendation made by the World Conference of Ministers Responsible for Youth, in Lisbon, that August 12, be declared International Youth Day and Ghana has always participated in its observation. The day is dedicated to the youth across the world to hear their voices, understand the needs, recognize and celebrate their achievements.
The CEO of the Youth Employment Agency, Justin Kodua Frimpong called for all youth institutions in the country to be brought together under one umbrella to form one holistic program and policy. He hoped this request will get a legal backing by next year.
The Director-General of the National Sports Authority (NSA), Abdul-Majeed Bawa also advised the youth to “use the Covid-19 period to make innovation and creativity more relevant in this period.”
“Think outside the box and use what we have locally to help in the development of the nation,”
The International Youth day involves youth from different countries engaging in events and discussions on socio-economic and socio-political issues affecting lives. The Strategic Youth Network for Development (SYND) in Ghana therefore employed the day to remind world leaders and governments to commit to ensuring active youth engagement in the decision-making processes.
A statement from the youth-led organization said, “Even though, the need for youth participation in decision-making is well intended, its implementation has often been very challenging especially in under-developed or developing economies. There ought to be clear indicators or measuring mechanisms to track the progress of how young people are engaged for action at local, national, regional and international levels.”
