Some say they are our future. Others say the future depends on them and the young people themselves say, their future is now. Whatever the saying, it is clear that as a country, continent and the world at large, we need to pay particular attention to this category of humanity: youth aged 15 to 24 years by UN definition.
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) with a mandate of delivering a world where every young person’s dream is realized, supported the National Youth Authority for the gathering of the first ever Youth Fest in Ghana under the hashtag “#PutYoungPeopleFirst”.
Just before this huge youth gathering, the President of the Republic of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo had unveiled his strategic roadmap for harnessing the demographic dividend in the country. The Youth Fest was used as a platform to build the knowledge of the youth themselves on what the demographic dividend is all about, what the President’s roadmap means, the expectations of the AU for the African continent as well as what role the youth themselves can play to ensure the success of this endeavor. A select group of young people from all the 216 districts and the 10 regions of Ghana converged at the Alisa Hotel on 21st December, 2017 for the event.
Addressing the gathering, UNFPA Country Representative Niyi Ojuolape, the architect of the event said there is the need to walk the talk and appropriately invest in the youth. This is critical because they form an integral part of the country’s development and constitute the majority of the workforce he emphasized. Investment in all four areas, education, health including sexual and reproductive health, entrepreneurial and leadership skills is vital to the achievement of the global agenda 2030. He urged government and policy makers to develop and implement policies and strategies that will benefit the youth.
In a speech read on his behalf, the Chief Executive Officer of NYA Mr. Emmanuel Asigri, expressed his gratitude to UNFPA for supporting such a memorable event where entertainment and education are harnessed as tools to provide information to young people. He said the fact that young people from all the districts are represented proves the country’s commitment to every young person no matter the location. He however, advised the young people to take advantage of every little opportunity in order to achieve their goals.
The event was climaxed with an evening of edutainment program that offered the youth chance to unwind. Popular comedian DKB and a Nigerian artiste Femi Branch with Giovani Caleb a radio and TV host, took the young people through issues such as sex education and peer pressure with King Promise performing for the youth. It was a night of merrymaking and learning.
Some young people took to sharing the information and feedback on social media, some of which are captured as: Irene Siaw said “what an awesome way to end the year at the #youthfest of @UNFPAGHANA !! Doing what we do best! #PutYoungPeopleFirst. And Suleman Ali also shared this: Thank you for a wonderful event. It was great and really learnt a lot. #DemographicDividend #PutYoungPeopleFirst.
A real campaign has begun in Ghana and everyone is encouraged to join the campaign by using #PutYoungPeopleFirst in all social media posts.
