Why Youth Development And Youth Empowerment Need Attention Now

August 12th of each year is celebrated as the United Nations International Youth Day to acknowledge the efforts of the world’s youth in enhancing global society. It also aims to promote ways of engaging youth in becoming more actively involved in making positive contributions to their communities.
It was in 1998 during a World Conference of Ministers responsible for Youth in Lisbon that a recommendation was adopted proclaiming August 12th as an International Youth Day. It was later endorsed in Resolution 54/120 by the UN General Assembly on December 17th 1999, the first observance the following year. However, the original idea for an International Youth Day was hatched in 1991 by young people who gathered in Vienna, Austria, for the first session of the UN Youth Forum. This forum consequently recommended that an International Youth Day be declared–with an emphasis on fundraising and promotional purposes–to support the UN Youth Fund in partnership with youth organizations around the world.

The many  different activities and events that take place around the world on this day are geared towards promoting the benefits that young people bring to the world around them. Many UN member countries participate by organizing events which may include youth conferences on issues such as education, health, employment, and entrepreneurship. Other activities would include concerts, sporting events, parades, and mobile exhibitions that showcase young people’s worth and achievement.

Our focus is this year’s IYD commemoration, held on August 12th under a very interesting theme: “Youth Civic Engagement”. With regards to this theme, the UN website states that “Youth Civic Engagement, a major goal of the United nations System-Wide Action Plan on Youth (Youth-SWAP), seeks to promote young people’s effective inclusive civic engagements at all levels.” It goes on further to mention that the engagement and participation of youth–essential to engage them politically, economically and socially– is currently low or nonexistent. The reason for this decline is that more efforts are needed to raise awareness about the importance of youth civic engagement and its benefits to the individual and to society, for sustainable development as well as resilience and well-being.
In a statement to commemorate this day, the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon expressly stated that:

“Emerging threats, violent extremism, shifting political conditions, economic turmoil and social transformations are combining to heighten the challenges facing the world’s young people. No one knows better than them the issues at stake or the best way to respond. That is why I am calling on young people to speak out – and I am urging leaders to listen.”

Also worthy of note is UNESCO Director General Irina Bokova’s commemorative word. She stated that:

“Young people must be considered the drivers of change and not only beneficiaries or targets. That involves reinforcing exchanges and cooperation between generations to ensure that young people are actually involved in developing the policies intended for them.”

Before we go any further, it is very necessary to develop a clearer understanding of the concept  of “youth”. Though it seems like a simple enough concept to consider, the“what” and “who” of  youth has always sailed on unsteady waters, with each community carving out for itself what constitutes its youth. However, by dint of the fact that the objectivity of perspective is what we seek, we retain the United Nations position of defining the world’s youth as “all persons between the ages of15 and 24 years old”. According to a 2010 statistic, this constitutes 18% of the global population and is expected to increase steeply, with 87% of international youth residing in developing countries.In a climate of economic uncertainty, it is all the more important for countries to invest in opportunities for their youth to learn, earn and grow so that the common future lies in good hands. The youths are a source of innovation, creativity, energy, and foresight and member states must use all means possible to foster and harness the power of the youth.Youth are leading the change and the IYD ensures that they have the ability, skill, motivation and recognition to continue to do so.

Now, take a careful and critical look at the youth today, and it will dawn on you that this very vibrant force, famously cajoled as leaders of tomorrow, are completely living and performing far below their real worth. This is particularly true of the individuals in many regions of Africa and the developing world. Look at the today’s global conflicts: the young people do not declare them nor decide on them, but across the board they provide the majority of bodies sent to war. Look at ‘terrorist’ factions today such as Boko Haram, Al Shabab and the Janjaweed: they are constantly being manipulated into literally surrendering their lives to suicidal missions. Look at the violent sexual brutalization of our girls and young women all around the world. Look at the fatal trade of our youth in human and drug trafficking. Look at the lifeless bodies of the young floating on the coasts of France, Italy, Spain and England– what were they running away from? The answer is obvious: home doesn’t feel like home any longer. Power struggles among the major structures have converged into a pattern of continuous inattention to youth development.

Nevertheless, the UN’s ECOSOC reports that recently, there has been more attention given to policy and programming focused on youth civic engagements by governments, UN entities, regional and multilateral organisations, CSOs, youth themselves, and researchers. Worthy of mention is the creation of national youth councils and other technical structures to address some of these issues within our countries. However, there is much doubt looming as to whether these highly government-controlled bodies can actually encourage the youth to grow and act creatively, peacefully, and responsibly. We must comes to terms with the fact that gone are the days when the appointment of youths to governmental positions (especially the Minister in charge of Youth) was a priority. Today, the kind of arrangement that can readily ensure a strong and reliable youth force is that which guarantees not only that youth are free to act without fear, but should be able and capable to bargain as independent, sovereign, viable partners their needs of today as leaders of tomorrow. In my perspective, youth is also synonymous with fragility. And when a person is fragile and you want them to grow, you create for them several experiences which allow them to test their chances, to fail even, so that after a number of repeated failures they can finally stand on their own. This is a practical lesson, maybe the kind you get from a driving school. And simple as it seems, this is what youth need: if you don’t believe so much in their power to affect change, at least give them a chance to fail. In that way they will truly acknowledge and believe they are a part of a whole.

On that note, I end this report with an famous quote, especially pertinent to this topic:

“Youthfulness obliges youths to fight for something; good or bad.
Create a nationalist ideology; make them believe in it,
Give them a chance to live and defend it,
And they’ll die honourably fighting for what the nation stands for.
But ignore this and they’ll do the exact opposite”.

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