Dissuade youth from extremists trapping - Speaker to govt
The Speaker of Parliament, Alban S.K. Bagbin, has said that special attention must be paid to the youth to dissuade them from falling into the traps of miscreants in the wake of activities of extremist groups in the sub-region.
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He expressed concern that activities of such groups were inching closer to the country’s borders, and therefore, called for immediate attention.
This was contained in a speech deliverered on his behalf by the Member of Parliament for the Asuogyaman Constituency, Thomas Apem Nyarko, at a workshop for the youth in Accra.
It was organised by the National Youth Authority and Young Parliamentarians Forum, a youth group, with support from the UNFPA.
The group was established to help boost the participation of young people in Parliament, and also ensure that young MPs play an effective role in the work of the House.
Although young people make up the majority of the world’s population, fewer than three per cent of MPs are under the age of 30.
Advice
The Speaker advised the youth to venture into entrepreneurship to keep themselves active.
He, however, said that the youth could not realise their dreams if the government did not create an enabling environment for job creation.
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Mr Bagbin, therefore, called on state authorities to improve on the macro environment space to help the youth identify and realise their dreams.
In line with that he said budgets of ministries and agencies must include a portion for youth development, adding that "issues of the youth should not be limited to the Ministry of Youth and Sports alone but must be embraced by all".
Decoupling
The President of the Forum, Elvis Morris Donkor, called for the decoupling of the Youth and Sports Ministry.
He said sports had always taken the shine away from the youth for which reason it must be separated.
The Chief Executive Officer of NYA, Pius Enam Hadzide, said his outfit was working towards empowering the youth and also creating opportunities for them.
He urged the various political parties to encourage more young people to enter Parliament.