Government will this year complete the Implementation Plan for the National Youth Policy to ensure systematic implementation of the policy.
Parliament is also to revise the current National youth law to make Ghana’s youth law modern and relevant in an effort to ensure youth empowerment and development.
This was made known when the Minister for Youth and Sports, Hon Elvis Afriyie-Ankrah delivered the keynote address at the opening of a two-day roundtable forum on the proposed National Youth Parliament at the Erata Hotel in Accra on Wednesday, the 27th of February, 2013.
The forum was organised by Youth Bridge Foundation in collaboration with the National Youth Authority.
The Minister said government was committed to the youth and thus formulated the youth policy which was launched by H.E. John Dramani Mahama, then Vice President.
He said the policy had nineteen priority areas, one of which was Governance and Democracy, adding that the concept of Youth Parliament was an important issue meant to deepen youth involvement and participation in the Governance process of the country.
President Mahama, the Minister said, had labelled the youth as ‘todays leaders’ and therefore admonished them that they had responsibility to themselves and society to be useful and productive citizens.
Hon Afriyie-Ankrah said to succeed, the youth must be prepared to make the desired impact by researching, studying hard, eschew ‘get rich quick’ attitudes and easy life, and rather be innovative as well as disciplined.
The National Co-ordinator of the National Youth Authority, Mrs Sedina Tamakloe-Attionu stated that best practises were being adopted to create systems to strengthen structures in the youth sector.
She said it was vital to empower the youth and give young people a voice in governance, hence the processes leading to the establishment of the National Youth Parliament.
Mrs Tamakloe-Attionu said some proposals for the establishment of the youth parliament included selecting two representatives from each district taking into consideration gender balance and then partnering them with those already in the process adding that participants should deliberate on others.
She commended the Youth Bridge Foundation for the Forum and called on other youth groups to come out with more fora to get the Youth Parliament process on-going.
Dr Abdul Rahman Lamin of the UNESCO Offices in Ghana stated that his outfit was proud to be associated with the NYA and its quest to ensure greater youth participation in the governance of the country.
There were presentations by Mrs Tamakloe-Attionu on the Status of Implementation of the National Youth Parliament so far; Mr Kwabla Mensah Woyome, Parliament Select Committee on Youth and Sports, on the place of the National Youth Parliament in Ghana’s Legislative architecture; Mr Dishon Kirama, President Emeritus, Kenya National Youth Parliament on International Best Practices and Mr Kwaku Agyeman Budu on Legal and Constitutional Underpinnings of the NYP.
Source: MOYS PR Department (Larry George Botchway)