On October 17, Youth from African Youth Rebirth Foundation (AYRF) partner with Society for Women Development of Nigeria(SWODEN) Kano to Stand Up and Speak Against Poverty. The rally took place at Naibawa area of Kano for about 2hrs; the young people use the opportunity to educate the community about the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs) and the importance of the STAND UP & SPEAK AGAINST POVERTY EVENT.

Those who can bring about freedom where it is absent and justice where it is denied are chiefly young people. . Often times the youth force retreat to dormancy and apathy for lack of perspective and coordination. In this frustration the youth force is hijacked and brought into conflict by belligerent, insurgent and other terrorist war lords either to resist possible democratic transition or to meet their deadly goals. Youth plays central roles, as fighters or victims. Civil conflicts could be reduced in many places if sufficient attention and resources are deployed to provide coordination, leadership and perspective to youths. Youths are valuable tools to safeguard against violation of basic human rights and government excesses if youths could take up their responsibilities and play their role as political actors during and after the transition process of their infant democracies.

Positive Nigerians Yahoo Group is open to all young Nigerians home and abroad who believe in the success of our infant democracy. Young Nigerians who sees Leadership as an opportunity to serve and not to be served; who believe in the success of the Nigeria Project. All group members around the world are expected to organize a monthly Leadership development Programme under the tag" Leadership Values for Positive Citizens" targeting the new cadre of Nigerian Leaders who are catalysts for positive Change.

Objectives
„Ï To build the capacity of youths for active and meaningful participation in national development
„Ï To help youths develop plans for action in their local communities
„Ï To develop in the youth the core values needed for good leadership
„Ï To promote gender equity, youths-youths and youths-adults partnership for national development
„Ï To inculcate in the youths the virtue of patriotism, good governance and democracy
„Ï To identify motivational tools for an effective leadership delivery

To be part of the chain: subscribe to - positivenigerians@yahoogroups.com

WHAT CAN THE YOUTH DO

The Youth
Youthful years mark a period of the great potential for productivity. Never is there a time more appropriate for young people laid the foundation for successful adult life than this stage of life. This stage characterized by ability for critical thinking and deliberate action enables young people to learn and respond to the requirement of a healthy life, take on responsibility in civic and community development, prepare for and begin careers. One third of Nigeria’s population are young people, yet channels for their involvement in policy-decision making processes remain largely limited. Youth participation in decision-making processes ranked the highest alongside education as the most important priority of young people in Nigeria. Young people want to be involved in decision making processes at all levels, especially in issues that affect them most. They can understand the essence of nurturing relationship and benefit from connections to family, school and community.

Most countries do not have specific structures in place for effective youth participation. Neither have they successfully managed to mainstream youth concerns, as the issues relating to young people fall across a variety of policy areas such as education, health and juvenile delinquency. Despite youth constituting more than 50% of the population in many countries; government rarely consult young people on matters affecting their lives, such as poverty reduction strategy efforts. Most government developed legislation on youth issues often lack comprehensive and holistic approaches to the challenges faced by the younger generation. A progressive national youth policy obliges traditional decision makers to not only work for young people, but with them in order to let their experiences inform the development of appropriate interventions and services.


WHAt the Youth Can Do in Achieving the Millennium Development Goals

Recommendations for Implementation
Towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals by year 2015; it is very important to channel the voice of youth through the following processes:

GOAL 1 – Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger

 Governments should create youth development indexes and trend monitoring schemes that are aligned to the MDGs and Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers
 Government must create mechanisms that ensure young people are involved in the development of PRSPs through the National Youth Council and other forums for youth representatives. This will ensure youth perspectives are heard and that Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers are relevant to local concerns. It will also promote participation for implementation.
 Governments should include young people in the implementation of new projects identified in national development and poverty reduction plans and strategies, as well as supporting existing youth-led development initiatives
 Development policies must prioritize the growth of rural areas which have high percentages of unemployed youth & little public infrastructure, by engaging young people in creating necessary services and infrastructure.
 Government must enact laws that foster the creation of community driven projects with urban youth living in poverty, support current youth-led entrepreneurial initiatives in urban communities
 Government must increase efforts to educate young people in urban communities on responsible sexual lifestyles and reproductive health as a public policy to measure to effectively manage population growth
 Youth must be trained in eliminating all types of corruption by encouraging specific youth driven anti-corruption projects
 Government must create communication strategies to inform young people on accessing anti-corruption commission

GOAL 2 – Achieve Universal Primary Education

 Young people should be encouraged to undertake community based initiatives that encourage school participation
 Government must support young people by provide financial support for volunteer tutoring to enhance education at various levels
 Government should make a policy of compulsory primary and secondary education for all Nigerian children
 Opportunity for young people to contribute to the curriculum through student school council

GOAL 3 – Promote Gender Equity and Empower Women

 Government should provide incentives and funding to youth organizations to initiate non formal education activities targeting girls and women
 There should be policy that encourage programmes that involve young women participation and leadership in national development to enable them help their communities
 Expanding and supporting the formal and non –formal education of girls and young women, empowering young women to help themselves, and promoting gender awareness in education
 Access of young women to higher education, increased political participation, micro credit and ICT, reproductive health education and services; and safety from violence and abuse
 Government and civic societies should provide support, training and a project incubation service to help young women leaders evaluate the needs of their communities and develop successful project


GOAL 4 - Reduce Child Mortality

 Government should promote peer – to – peer education on sexual and reproductive health and right
 Train unemployed youth in community-based health work, prenatal care, emergencies obstetric care and family planning
 Support youth campaigns to make vaccination for infectious diseases available to all
 Provide enabling environment for youth to address local public health problems; access to safe water and sanitation

GOAL 5 – Improve Maternal Health

 Encourage youth peer to peer education on sexual health like HIV & AIDS, STDs, awareness creation on consequences of child marriage and adolescent pregnancy
 Encourage youth to speak about their culture, and encourage their voices to be a part of community formation
 Support youth campaigns about scientific implications of some cultural practices

GOAL 6 – Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Other Diseases

 Encourage youth to create awareness, innovative & effective strategies for the prevention of HIV/AIDS, TB, Malaria and all diseases
 Mobilize and strengthen youth peer educators to visit schools, places of worship & other community structures
 Create, mobilize and strengthen teams of youth educators to visit school, places of worship and other structure in their communities

GOAL 7 – Ensure Environmental Sustainability

 Provide more funds so that youth can attend and participate in UN environmental processes
 Build and support global networks among youth organizations promoting sustainable development
 Foster partnership opportunities with youth organizations and international agencies to develop local and national projects
 Training & funding made available to support youth initiatives for clean water projects, renewable energy enterprises, community based water supply projects

GOAL 8 – Develop a Global Partnership for Development

 Address youth employment as a fundamental block to poverty eradication and as a powerful mechanism for delivering MDGs
 Provide micro-finance and skills development initiatives to reduce barriers for youth entrepreneurship
 Strengthen youth entrepreneurship networks
 The Government should empower the rural & urban youth as learners, developers, contributors, entrepreneurs and decision-makers on the issue of Information and Communication Technologies.


Way forward

 Advocacy and Awareness- There is a need to raise awareness about MDGs among young people in schools, organizations and local communities
 Policies – Government should develop an up to date National Youth Policy that would encourage youth active participation in MDGs business plan
 Action – One of the main challenges young people face is a lack of access to finance, whether it be grant or loans, to support their initiatives. Existing grant mechanisms should be made more relevant and accessible to young people, through simplified and adapted application processes, the inclusion of young people in the selection committees, and recognition that young people often lack formal structures, such as legally registered organizations through which they carry out heir activities. Young people should have access to financing opportunities to enable them carry out MDG –related projects or become entrepreneurs; mentorship opportunities to build intergenerational partnership and engaged in monitoring the progress towards achieving the MDGs
 Networking and Collaboration: - Opportunities through youth media initiative and global online network to engage in discussion and action around the MDGs.

Investing in the youth will provide the longest and most effective dividend towards meeting the Millennium Development Goals by building the social capital needed to foster pragmatic development.