The Kwara Government has challenged youths in the state to engage in global actions to access numerous opportunities in the global space.
The state’s Commissioner for Sports and Youth Development, Mrs Joana Kolo, gave the task in Ilorin on Thursday at an event to mark the
International Youth Day (IYD) 2020 organised by the ministry in collaboration with Olive Community Development Initiative.
The commissioner dwelt on ways by which the engagement of young people at the local, national and global levels could
enrich both national and multilateral institutions.
Kolo, who spoke on “Youth Engagement for Global Action”, stressed that “engaging youths in formal political mechanism will
skyrocket fairness in political processes and discourage democratic deficits.”
He said that the state government was aware of hazards in paying lip service to youth-related matters, noting that
the government was, however, committed to proper channelling of the strength of youths toward productive, positive and communally advantageous cause.
Drawing the attention of stakeholders to some of the challenges currently facing humanity such as the COVID-19 pandemic, rape and climate change,
the commissioner recommended concerted global action and meaningful engagement of youth to effectively tackle the menace.
He described youths as potentially exuberant, dynamic, ambitious and creative, and advised them to see patriotism as a potent force for progress.
Kolo appreciated the ministry’s partner, Olive Community Development Initiative (OCDI), for its love, passion and support for the youth, the ministry and Kwara at large.
The Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Iyabo Banire, noted that “the yearly celebration of IYD is tremendously important and beneficial to youths,
as well as Nigeria as a whole, as it reminds the people of their expected responsibilities to the nation and the entire global community.”
Banire charged the youth to use the occasion for the discovery of greater innovations that would drive development in the country.
The Chief Executive Officer of Olive Community Development Initiatives, Mrs Oluwatoni Adeleke, identified interconnectivity advantage as an imperative
tool for youths in exploring the world from their country.
She said “youths in this part of the world have great and vibrant ideas, but needed to be well coordinated, to enable them to harness global opportunities.”
Adeleke, who was represented by the organisation’s Programmes Manager, Mrs Mojoyinola Adewoye, called for the emancipation of women and enjoined
stakeholders to provide ample opportunities to women, by allowing them to lend their voices to matters relating to development.
The IYD 2020 event, with the theme “Youth Engagement for Global Action,” featured lectures on ways to enhance youth engagement and tips to be
better individuals in life, facilitated by the Technical Adviser to the Kwara Governor on Agriculture, AbdulQuawiy Olododo, and former Youth Parliament
Leader, Halimat Gegele.
The UN General Assembly in 1999 endorsed the recommendation made by the World Conference of Ministers Responsible for
Youth (Lisbon, Aug. 8- Aug. 12, 1998) that Aug. 12 be declared International Youth Day.
The theme of the 2020 IYD 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.
It will also shed light on the need to enable the engagement of youth by making local, national and global institutions more inclusive
for the purpose of strengthening youths’ capacity and relevance to achieve global action. (NAN)
Aug. 13, 2020 | 12:01 GMT
