YAG calls for national discourse on the future of Ghanaian youth
Mr Emmanuel Ametepey, Executive Director of Youth Advocates Ghana (YAG) has entreated all relevant stakeholders as a matter of urgency to converge and have a national discourse concerning the future of the youth of this country.
Indicating that failure for the state and other relevant stakeholders to deliberate on the future of the youth meant that gradually the country will be losing a chunk of its youth to criminality.
Explaining that most of the youth have skills and talent, however, that have not been developed due to lack of support, but if such skills are properly nurtured they can help in the development of the country.
He made the call when he spoke to Kwaku Aboagye Apenteng on Freedom Radio’s ‘’Yen Man’’ show, stating that the current happenings in the country are very worrying because the youth have become the frontrunners whenever there are robbery cases or other criminalities.
‘’It’s a cause for concern and a hindrance to the development of this country’’ he emphasised.
Mr Ametepey attributed the causes to a combination of related societal factors citing that, unemployment, modernization which has brought about the internet, social media, where affluence has become the norm.
‘’ If you are not able to control yourself then you will have to join because the desire for quick money on the part of the youth has risen and such desires drive the youth to do things which are unpleasant’’ he indicated.
He blamed the educational system for not being skill-oriented and said even students who can acquire entrepreneurial skills have little or no support.
He said due to the unfavourable system the youth who will fall through always want to find ways to survive, so they end up engaging in all manner of fraudulent activities to be able to survive.
Mr Ametepey commended the contribution of churches and other religious bodies in absorbing more people from the street but indicated that they needed to do more in terms of moral education so that the youth can understand the principles of life.
‘’The institutions, religious bodies should let the youth understand that it is through hard work that one can become prosperous and not through any short means in life ‘’ he added.
He called on all stakeholders to create more opportunities for everyone to feel they are Ghanaians irrespective of their background because people are frustrated and they believe the system is not working for anybody.
Source: freedomradiogh.com
