YOUTH - A PANACEA FOR SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

YOUTH - A PANACEA FOR SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

Good afternoon distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen.

All protocols duly observed.

The United Nations, for statistical purposes, defines ‘YOUTH’, as those persons between the ages of 15 and 24 years, without prejudice to other definitions by Member States; the African Youth Charter recognises the age bracket of 15-35. 

Youth embodies the appearance of energy, dynamism, and freshness; the quality of being young.

According to a 2015 UN Youth population trends and sustainable development report, there were 1.2 billion youth aged 15-24 years globally in 2015, accounting for one out of every six people worldwide. By 2030, the target date for the sustainable development goals, the number of youth is projected to have grown by 7 per cent, to nearly 1.3 billion. 

In Africa, the number of youth is growing rapidly. In 2015, 226 million youth aged 15-24 lived in Africa, accounting for 19 per cent of the global youth population. By 2030, it is projected that the number of youth in Africa will have increased by 42 per cent. Africa’s youth population is expected to continue to grow throughout the remainder of the 21st century, more than doubling from current levels by 2055. 

Global institutions recognize the importance of youth data to world growth and development, hence my refences to UN and AYC. This cannot be overemphasized given the projections provided above in relation to world developmental indicators.

The National Bureau of Statistics estimates that Nigeria has a 60% youth unemployment rate in relation to its total work force. This is alarming! The recent #Endsras protest is a reminder of what the youth can do with synergy. However, our focus is towards channeling this energy positively.

Let’s bring this closer home; Ajegunle- AJ City.

Ajegunle, when translated in English means wealth has landed here,residence of wealth or land of commerce. 

Regrettably, the current situation on ground is at contrast with the meaning of Ajegunle. The reality is one of infrastructure dearth, high unemployment rate, poor waste management, absence of public sanitary facilities, increasing poverty rates, bad roads, absence of quality water, medical facilities, security issues, and power instability et al. Of greater concern is the rising trend of vices like drug abuse, prostitution, rape, cultism, and cybercrime, which are prevalent amongst the YOUTH. 

Irrespective of these challenges, Ajegunle has produced notable Nigerians of repute traversing all spheres of the nation. It is also important to mention the ongoing commendable efforts by the state and local governments at alleviating poverty and providing basic infrastructure. We encourage our leaders to do more.

According to the Lagos State Abstract on local government statistics, the population of Ajegunle was estimated at over 2million in 2017 with an annual projected growth rate of 3.2%. 

It is also estimated that the youth population of Lagos State is 50% in relation to a total Lagos State population of 25million in 2017. Transposing this scenario into the youth population of Ajegunle gives an insight into the potentially untapped dynamism of the youth.

Concept of Social Development:

There are several concepts of social development. One is used in developmental psychology: it is the process by which a child learns to interact with others. The other one is sociological: it is the process of improving the well-being of everyone in society.

The focus of this submission is on the second definition, which speaks more to developmental issues. The characteristics and indicators of social development are linked to improvements in education, longevity, prosperity, equality, and security and these vary from community to community and place to place. 

Social development aims at freeing people of pain, difficulties, shackles, limitations, drudgery, injustice, ignorance, lack of skills and lack of knowledge. It enables every human being to live life along the principles like equality, equal opportunity, equity, ability to use one’s rights, and many others cherished by the great and the best constitutions created in this world.

As earlier stated, the issues in different places and societies may be different. For example, rural communities like Ajegunle have different development issues from their urban counterparts and so or the people from developed nations may have different social development issues from the underdeveloped ones.

The central aim of any social development is to remove or alleviate poverty in all its forms including economical, technological, intellectual, know-how related, lifestyle related and spiritual.

In addition, the social development also aims at enabling everyone, especially from the downtrodden sections of society, women, and underprivileged people to make their own choices in their lives and implement them successfully.

And finally, the social development also ensures the sustainability of the interventions made in a particular society to achieve and sustain the objectives mentioned above.

UN World youth report 2030 agenda in relation to the 17 SDGs:

1 - End poverty in all its forms everywhere.

2 - End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture.

3 - Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.

4 - Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote life-long learning opportunities for all

5 - Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls

6 - Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all

7 - Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all

8 - Promote sustained, inclusive & sustainable economic growth, full & productive employment & decent work for all

9 - Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation

10 - Reduce inequality within and among countries

11 - Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable

12 - Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

13 - Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts

14 - Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development

15 - Protect, restore, and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, …

16 - Promote peaceful & inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all, institutions

17 - Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development

The report accentuates that the active engagement of youth in development efforts is central to achieving sustainable, inclusive, and stable societies by the target date, and to averting the worst threats and challenges to sustainable development, including the impacts of climate change, unemployment, poverty, gender inequality, conflict, and migration. 

It also focuses primarily on the areas of Education and Employment, underlining the realization of targets under these Goals as fundamental to overall youth development. Issues related to other Goals—including gender equality, good health, reducing inequality, combating poverty and hunger, and action on environmental issues and climate change—are also addressed briefly within the scope of the Report.

Interestingly, the federal government of Nigeria also identifies YOUTH empowerment as a panacea to social development and has embarked on polices. Notice how this fits perfectly into the World Youth report focusing on education and Employment

According to Dr. Charles Ogheneruonah Eghweree; a lecturer at the Political Science Department of the University of Benin, Nigeria., the federal government has initiated policy directives to enhance the following:

·      Employability: investing in education and vocational training for young people, and improving the outcomes of those investments.

·      Equal Opportunities: giving young women the same opportunities as young men.

·      Employment Creation: place employment creation at the centre of macroeconomic policy.

·      Entrepreneurship: making it easier to start or run enterprises to provide more and better jobs for young women and men.

Other more direct responses to urban youth unemployment in Nigeria include measures such as the creation of the National Directorate of Employment (NDE), the National Poverty Alleviation Programme (NAPEP), the Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme (SURE-P), and the Youth Enterprise with Innovation in Nigeria (YOU-WIN). All these are geared towards dealing with youth unemployment.

Unfortunately, most of these policies fail due to their wrong conceptualisation and vague nature of the intervention programmes, which fail to proffer solutions for the problem.

There is also the issue of poor management and administrative oversight of these programmes, huge political influence that thrives on patronage politics, as well as a lack of synergy between the federal, state, and local governments. The Nigerian state runs a centralised federal system tilted heavily against the state level. This vitiates purposive initiative by the states to curb urbanisation in the first place and resultant urban youth unemployment by extension. 

He also went on to say that Government at all levels needs to re-focus unemployment programmes and make them purpose driven. This means shifting from a mere prescriptive employment drive to wealth creation capability through entrepreneurial activities by youths. Entrepreneurship has the highest capacity to trigger self-employment and create employment for sustainable development.

Again, government needs to double its efforts towards providing enabling environments for businesses to grow, while simultaneously encouraging job creation for the teaming youth population in the country. Finally, we recommend that government should de-emphasize political considerations in deciding beneficiaries of youth employment programmes in general and urban youth employment programmes in particular.

Government alone cannot solve all our problems:

Local government must also seek collaboration with NGOs, corporate and social organizations as well as well-meaning individuals in the community towards achieving sustainable social development programs. Some NGOs and organizations are already giving back and we encourage more interdependence in this regard.

It is pertinent at this stage to encourage notable sons and daughters of Ajegunle to join the cause of MENTORSHIP and “giving back to support ongoing government initiatives.

We often hear the saying that children are our future. But what happens when children take the troubled path, succumbing to crime, drug addiction or self-destruction? If children are our future, isn’t it our responsibility to shape our future by shaping our youth? We can do that through mentorship.

 Mentors are advisers, teachers, sources of funding and guides about classes, careers, jobs, graduate schools and life choices. Above all, mentors are motivators and role models, who believe in their mentees, see their potential and help them get to where they want to go. 

Children and adolescents are at important periods of development. Youth are vulnerable to taking the wrong step, which is why mentors are important for them. 

Mentors may not be able to change how fast a child’s brain develops or force a child to make certain decisions, but mentors can share their worldviews, experiences, knowledge, support, and advice, as well as provide a positive influence. By introducing youth to new experiences and sharing positive values, mentors can help young people avoid negative behaviors and achieve success. 

Parents and guardians are naturally in the lives of youth and are some of the most influential people in their lives. Parents and guardians are youth’s No. 1 influence against poor choices. However, parents and guardians may not possess all the answers, and sometimes, youth need an external person or a variety of people with whom to talk and share their thoughts.

Teachers, coaches, ministers and neighbors are great options outside of parents and guardians. Referred to as informal mentors because they are naturally-occurring and not matched, they all have the capacity to be good role models, inspire youth and shape their future.

Why Should I Mentor?

Why not? Not only is mentorship beneficial for mentees, mentors gain from the experience. Mentors learn about themselves, enhance their resumes, improve interpersonal skills, develop empathy and gain a deeper understanding of youth problems. Most importantly, mentors gain a sense of accomplishment by positively impacting the life of another person; the process of helping youth achieve their potential and discover their strengths is rewarding in itself.

Finally, many of us would not be where we are without the support of mentors. If we are able, we should pay it forward, and then in turn, mentored youth will pay it forward and mentor others. They can shape our future, all by us mentoring and shaping theirs.

Thank you for listening.

Steve Idornigie

Sources and References:

National Bureaus of Statistic

National Population Commission

United Nations

Lagos State Government Abstract of Local Government Statistics

Quora

The Value In Mentoring Our Youth: Social Work License Map