Involvement of young people in the rural areas as decision makers

INVOLVEMENT OF YOUNG PEOPLE IN THE RURAL AREAS AS DECISION MAKERS

Last I year I read a quote by a young Nigerian on the United Nations Millenarian Development Goals page that ‘young people are the least consulted in the nation”. One of the secrets of the development and advancement of ancient Greece was the principle of consultation before decision making. No one was an island of himself, regardless of the position he is occupying.
Even the wisest king in all history according to the Holy Scriptures in his writing in proverbs, Solomon made reference to the importance of counselors three times, hear him
“Where there is no wise guidance, the nation falls, But in the multitude of counselors there is victory”. “Where there are no wise suggestions, purposes come to nothing; but by a number of wise guides they are made certain”. “For by wise counsel thou shalt make thy war: and in multitude of counsellors there is safety” end quote.
In national development, we cannot remove the place of wise counsel in decisions that will eventually lead to our success or failure. But the big question is who can give this counsel or suggestions that can aid our national development. Is to be left for the technocrats alone, the educated and the elites? No a thousand times No. I think part of the people who should make positive contribution to the national issues are the down trodden, the minority, the oppressed and most especially those in the rural areas who knows where the shoes of poverty, deprivation and lack of infrastructural facilities is paining them.
Let me paint a picture here that may help us, do you know that the average young student in a rural secondary school may never have set his eyes on a chemistry chemical? Not to talk of a computer? Then you cant imagines he knows what email, blogging, ipod, flash drive is in the 21st century so in essence they are been trained not to be able to function in a modern society. While their counterparts in the cities attend “British model” schools, go for exchange in Europe and America or Abuja and Lagos . The issues is don’t these same secondary school students have the same basic rights to quality education?is it a crime to be born in the rural area of Nigeria ?
This article is may not be an intellectual master piece, but just a simple awakening of the voice of reason to see that we progress in our bid to build a new Nigeria .
How can the young people in the rural area participate in decision making?
I feel it has to start with all those who are into developmental work, if we are really into development and not just developing our ‘pockets” and catching fun by attending workshops, summits and conferences, a larger percentage of our projects and porgrammes should be focused on rural young people and in the rural areas. These programmes should be interactive and participatory. With this we can by observation and their input feel their pains and get their voice on major issues then direct to appropriate quarters, by placing them on our websites, blogs e.t.c on their behalf, or a written report to the people concern.
Open forums in the rural areas should be encouraged, where young people are called upon to openly voices their opinions, the recordings of these open forums should not just be in a writing format but video format, this would help to make the voice of rural young people known and thereby participate in decision making. In these open forums, their local government chairmen and councilors should be present, it could even go beyond open forums and also include accountability sessions where the chairmen give account of what they have received and these young people can b part of the monitoring process whether elections or budget.
Our conferences, summits should start taking place also in the rural areas so that rural young people can adequately participate and get abreast of current issues.
The use of local dialect in the production of IEC materials should be encouraged, so that youths in rural areas who cannot read in English can also get informed about current happenings and make contributions in their own language, which can later be translated to English.
When workshops, conferences and summits are being organized special preference should be given to them to encourage there active participation, this will encourage them to have the required self esteem to start contributing to national issues.
These same young people in the rural areas are the people politicians pick as thugs to the city during elections, if they can come and fight in the city during elections, why cant they come an attend summits where they can give positive contributions in the city or have we turned our rural youths to political animals serving the interest of the high class thieves amongst us? Or those of us in development have we turned them to statistic that improves our report for funds and grant to be released to us without us giving them the opportunity for their voice to be heard?
We should not forget that these same young people if given the right environment have the capacity to help turn our nation around, because within them lies innate potentials that need to be awaken.
Lets empower our rural youths, let them be part of the decision makers in the society, if not now? When? If not you who?

About Ogaga E. Maxwell and Dare 2 Dream Youth Initiative, Warri,Delta State,Nigeria

About Me

A dynamic young man committed to youth development, capacity building, and conflict resolution. Maxwell holds a B.Sc (ED) Degree in Social Studies Education and a BCC in Leadership from the prestigious Daystar Leadership Academy, Lagos. He leads the Earth Charter Youth Group in Warri, Delta State, Nigeria (www.earthcharter.org) a programme which currently organizes workshops for secondary school
A UNICEF trained peer educator, and a TIG/CLCWA Trainer (www.takingitglobal.org/clcwa). He also debuts as the Deputy Volunteer Coordinator CLCWA Delta State. In recognition of his thought provoking contributions to youth development and engagement, he was invited to the first process of the Nigeria e-youth forum to Abuja under the auspices of British Council/ Youngstars Foundation in the first quarter of 2008. Also, in recognition of his unfliching contributions to developmental efforts in Delta State, he won an Award at the Delta Youth Summit in January 2008 in Asaba where he chaired a Youth Working Group in Leadership,Good governance and Democracy.Maxwell was invited by the British Council and the Youngstars Foundation to participate in the Nigeria Youth Stakeholders Forum, in Abuja to discuss and recommend practical solutions to financing Youth Development in Nigeria around 2008. He was engaged as the Chair of this forum's Working Group on Niger Delta.He interests transcends through National Development, and he is the conveyner of the "New Nigeria Dream Summit" every August in Warri, Delta State, Nigeria. The first key note speakers were the Ex-president of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staffs Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) Dr Brown Ogbeifun (www.brownogbeifun.com) and Gbenga Sessan of Paradigm Initiative Nigeria (PIN) (www.gbengasesan.com).He is married and resides in Warri, where he is the team leader of an NGO Dare 2 Dream Youth Initiative, a programme that builds young people's capacity in the area of leadership, ICT for Development, and value orientation.Maxwell is really interested in getting partners in the area of youth leadership, peace and conflict resolution, environment and good governance initiatives!

DARE 2 DREAM YOUTH INTITAITIVE

Organization Profile
In the midst of major world challenges, something profound is being reborn – recognition that youths with concern, vision and commitment can make significant contributions to transforming the planet.
That is what D2DYI is all about, an organization that brings youths together, youths that believe that according to Mahatma Gandhi they can be the change they want to see, youths that believe in self motivation, value based leadership, the New Nigeria and the positive deployment of our talents and potentials.
D2DYI aggress with Margaret Mead that you “never doubt that a small group of thoughtful commitment citizens can change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has”
Some men see things as they are and say, ‘why?’ we dream of the things that never were and say, ‘why not! We see a new caliber of youths rising to build the New Nigeria of our dreams and we are committed through positive actions in seeing it come to pass.
The youths of D2DYI are stepping above the limitations of their environment, we are daring to dream, and knowing that in the dream of a better tomorrow lies the very future we hope for.
AIM
Raise and Equip young people as leaders and agents of change.
OBJECTIVES
Inspire and motivate youths toward self-realization and actualization.
Enhance and strengthen the leadership capacity of young people.
Assist youths to take their rightful place as contributors to a new enlightened world through policy engagement in a democratic process.
Engage and Empower young people to be truly motivated to work in the contributing to communal, and National development through efficient partnership/collaboration and volunteering.
PHILOSOPHY
Every young person if given the right environment, empowered and equipped can be a change agent, because we are all created by God for a specific purpose and assignment.
THEMATIC AREAS
Leadership Development
Youth Entrepreneurship
Environments and Culture
Peace Building/Conflict Resolution and Governance
VALUES
Excellence
Integrity
Accountability

Ogaga E. Maxwell
Team Leader
+2348034810869
d2dyi@yahoo.com