The Nigerian National Youth Development Policy of 2001 defines youth as a person or people between the ages of 18 years and 35 years. This accounts for about 43% of Nigeria’s populace which amounts to 68.8 million people. Their agility, strength, mental and physical wellbeing as well as numerical superiority make them individually and collectively powerful actuators of change.
This change in question could be to the benefit of society or on the other hand, to its detriment. To a large extent, the capabilities of youth have played out in causing great harm to the peaceful coexistence of society as against what would accepted as sustainable positive change.
A critical appraisal of the many ills challenging the harmonious stability of the country within the context of the present time would show that young people constitute the bulk of the perpetrators and culprits of such acts. From crime rates to social vices, religious and ethno-political instabilities to security challenges, young people are seen as viable tools to gain selfish interests.
The bitter truth as a matter of fact is that there is no platform or enabling conditions that would have for the most part enabled young people to synergise both individually and collectively, and hone their capabilities for the greater good of nationhood and mankind. One may think that considering the fact that young people constitute the bulk of the country’s population they play indispensable roles in the scheme of things in some or most key facets of the country. However, this is not so.
The point in fact is that the opposite is the case especially within the context of the present dispensation. The functions and roles of youth in key sectors of the Nigerian state still continue to exist within the realms of sheer marginality. To a large extent, the vast majority of young people are unable to hone their capabilities with a view to effecting change, due to a number of factors viz: neglect and or non-activism in governance, misinformation and lack of enlightenment, loss of identity, neglect in the scheme of things, amongst others.
This challenge does not only occur in youth involvement and activism but also in the areas of sustainable development, empowerment and mobilization. These anomalies need to be corrected and their root causes nipped in the bud. For positive changes to be effected, young people being the most active agents of change must be properly informed, enlightened and empowered in the right environments under enabling conditions, in order to turn their useful ideas to reality. And only when this happens can they become able to harness their energies to solving real-life problems. In the words of Socrates, “the secret of change is to focus all our energy, not on fighting the old but building.” By this this I mean that for tangible positive change to be occasioned by young people at this time, new changes need to take place.
Changes that will serve as key panacea and have positive effects on young people. This in my own opinion should start with the education and enlightenment of young people. Quite a number of young people are yet to know their rights and privileges, true identities and the key roles they play in the society. With about more than half the young population of the country below literacy level, accounting for over 30 million youth, concerted efforts need to be put in place.
Those especially at grassroots level, need be properly enlightened on the different media through which they can bring about positive reforms at local, state, national and international levels. This would go a long way in providing clear understanding of governance, politics, the natural environment as well as ways in they can create sustainable positive change, hence reducing the risk of them being lured for ulterior purposes, especially at this time when political office holders as well as aspiring politicians alike seek such young minds as mobilisers for campaigns and other electioneering activities.
As the most important body in the political and constitutional cadres of any sovereign state, the roles of the government especially in this regard, cannot be overemphasised. For the mutual coexistence of people in society, irrespective of ethnicity, religious affiliation, background or culture, it is the role of government to uphold to the rule of law and tenets of constitutionalism, hence making it a key determinant of the stability of any country. In the same vein, the role of the government in the affairs of youth goes a long way in determining the level of effectiveness and sustainable productivity of the outcome. One key area in pertinent need of government support and assistance is in the area of youth participation and activism in governance, especially at grassroots and state levels of government.
The political instability coupled with corruption and nepotism stand as major setbacks to a young democracy such as ours. This has by implication brought about poor representation of young people by young people in governance. Efforts by the government at correcting this anomaly are yet to yield positive results. Most young people at state and grassroots levels do not know if there exists any organization known as the National Youth Parliament. Resolutions of the National Youth Development Policy are yet to be properly implemented for the good of lay youth. Hence the government needs to create enabling environments for youth representation and participation.
One way of achieving this is by creating meetings and conferences where young people (directly or by representation) meet directly with the government, so that proper resolutions will reached on the table of dialogue. Secondly, the issue of youth empowerment is of especial importance. If young people are not empowered then the means to change is but handicap. To a large extent, it will be a herculean task should the government try to on its own, empower the large young populace. Hence there is need for the private sector to compensate the efforts of the government by building partnerships that will bring about entrepreneurial initiatives and empowerment schemes that will foster effective long-lasting change. Also, the creation of an annual “National Youth Week” by the government as a means recognising, encouraging, emancipating, enlightening and mobilising young people as agents of change across all religious, ethnic or political grounds will be a step in the right direction.
Within the last decade, the use of the internet as well as other related technologies in the country has increased at an overarching rate. As for the benefits, they are no far-fetched. Today, Nigeria has the largest internet market on the African continent. Hence this stands as a vital opportunity and platform for young people to build an active network through which useful ideas, information and knowledge can be shared. For example, during my last year in secondary school, as the president of The Young Farmers’ Club, I suggested that the members of the club should collectively work on a plan to carry out a sensitisation seminar on climate change. But at that time, I had no idea on how to go about it.
I resorted to searching for “Green Clubs” online for help. Fortunately for me, I was able to come across a number of such clubs whose suggestions and teachings were very helpful in the successful organisation of that seminar. The internet through via its platforms such as social media, online forums and groups can be of immense help by providing virtual platforms and environments in which youth at local, national and international levels can interact.
However a major challenge will be the inability of youth at grassroots to understand the operations of the computer or the internet.
In furtherance to the issue in question, inter- and non- governmental organisations (IGOs and NGOs) as well as civil rights groups alike are also of pertinent assistance in helping young people at all levels express themselves. They have also been very instrumental in creating useful avenues through which youth relate with government and relevant authorities as a means of fostering positive change.
The involvement and active participation of youth in such institutions, backed by the right motives, will bring about enabling avenue in which young minds can interact, share their thoughts on the best possible ways of bettering their lives and the immediate environment for the greater good of society. In addition, Within the last decade, these institutions have to a large extent, been the voices of the incapable, indigent and less-privileged in society; helping youth by providing soccour, empowerment and enlightenment. Moral, material, and financial help by government and the private sector would go a long way in helping them do more.
According to a global survey by the World Economic Forum on Global Risk Assessment for 2014, one of the Ten Global Risks of Highest Concern is “Profound Political and Social Instability.” This has to a large extent negatively affected the socio-political spheres of most developing economies of which Nigeria is one. From acts insurgence and terrorism, to ethnic and communal clashes, to spates of kidnappings, social unrests and organized crime in parts of the country, security stands as one major bane threatening the peace and mutual coexistence of the nation.
The involvement of young people in these acts of nefariousness has reduced the country’s security to a sorry state. Correcting this problem requires all hands on deck, but more importantly, young people. Avenues for conflict resolution and peace-building via town hall meetings, seminars, festivals and workshops will be very vital. Also, partnerships between youth groups and security agencies at all levels of government will serve as pertinent prerequisites towards curbing social unrests, religious radicalization, and organized crime. In the words of ….., “no war has ever been won except on the table of dialogue.” The use of dialogue by young people in achieving peaceful and mutual coexistence is of primary necessity, especially for a country like Nigeria where there exists diversities in ethnicity, culture and religion.
For tangible effective change to happen, two cardinal points, implementation and sustainability, must be brought to the front burner. The true definition of change does not hinge on mere propositions, but also on proper implementation and sustenance. A call to action beckons. A better future for our great country and the world is on the horizon. A future of peace between man and nature. But the question is who can help to make this a reality? The youth. Yes, we the youth.