African youth honour fallen Ghanaian leader

The Fourth African Youth and Governance Conference 2012 (AYGC) opened in Accra, Ghana on Wednesday, with the first day dedicated to the memory of the late President of Ghana John Evans Atta-Mills.The dedication of the first day to the late President was for his passion towards youth empowerment on the African continent.The three-day conference dubbed “Partnership for Job Creation: A Wheel for Transformational Governance” is being attended by delegates from 31 African countries and Australia to dialogue on issues relating to youth unemployment and come up with workable models towards addressing such issues.Addressing the opening ceremony, Dr Anthony Cudjoe, Chief Executive Officer of Emerging Leaders Africa, an NGO, bemoaned the rate at which the youth, after graduating from various educational institutions crave for “prestigious” jobs even when there were none available.He challenged the youth to take advantage of opportunities available in their various countries and venture into entrepreneurship instead of solely depending on government for employment.Dr Cudjoe expressed his displeasure at how the youth were sometimes used by politicians during political campaigns but was forgotten and neglected after elections.“Sometimes we the youth allow ourselves to be used at our own detriment and we must wake up, there is the need to challenge some of these bad practices among some of our politicians in the interest of Africa,” he said.Dr Cudjoe said it was necessary to revise and improve upon the educational curriculum to provide employable training for the youth in the various institutions in the country.Clement Kofi Humado, Minister of Youth and Sports in a speech read on his behalf recounted government’s contribution towards youth employment by creating over one million jobs within the past three years, as a result of subsequent conferences by AYG.He said there was the need to recognise the youth as partners in decisions that affected them which could constitute a major leap in the efforts of other stakeholders in youth unemployment.The Sector Minister said the conference should foster international cooperation and dialogue on the challenges of youth unemployment and serve as advocacy forum to place these issues as a priority on government policies.Mr Humado noted that it was by exchange of ideas and the determination of government to solve the problem that any measurable progress could be made in the fight to reduce youth unemployment.Pavelyn Tendai Musaka, Zimbabwean High Commissioner to Ghana expressed his condolence to Ghanaians, government and the families of the late President John Evans Atta Mills.She encouraged the youth to be inspired and become action oriented in small scale and medium enterprises to create employment in their countries.Seth Oteng, Executive Director, Youth Bridge Foundation expressed his appreciation at the youth’s commitment towards governance in Africa, as well as their desire to join Ghanaians to mourn the late President Mills.He said the late President Mills had left a legacy that should be carried on, especially in the area of addressing issues of youth unemployment.The climax of the conference will be the African Youth Heritage Festival on Friday, August 10, also in honour of the memory of the late President Mills at the National Theatre in Accra.The Youth Bridge Foundation (YBF), a non-partisan youth-focused NGO, organised the 4th African Youth and Governance Conference (AYGC).The AYGC is an annual event aimed at bringing together young and aspiring leaders of Africa and the Diaspora to discuss governance issues and the impact they have on African’s Development.Earlier, Seth Oteng, Executive Director of YBF, noted that the three-day conference aimed to build confidence in young people seeking ways to meet their basic needs and acquire maturity, confidence and skills critical for full participation in society.Themed “Partnerships for Job Creation: A Wheel for Transformational Governance” the conference is also aim at broader inclusiveness in Africa’s development agenda where the youth are recognised as key players in solving their own problems that will affect the entire society in every African country.