Chukwudi Achife
26 July 2007
Enugu — United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has decried the high level of unemployment and deviance among youths in Nigeria, saying only concerted and more committed effort among international agencies, governments and non-governmental organizations could reverse the ugly trend.
Enugu State coordinator of the organization, Mr Joseph Anyadike, stated this at a workshop on a draft document on the strategy for youth employment through skill and trade acquisition in the state prepared by Poverty in Africa Alternative (POVINAA).
He said that if not checked, the trend would render the economic reforms of the federal and state governments mostly ineffective, especially as they affected the effort to curtail poverty and crime.
Anyadike observed that Enugu provided a veritable ground for the running of pilot projects on youth empowerment and employment given the alarming number of unskilled youths who roam the streets in search of various endeavours some of which are illegal.
"We must all do something about this worrisome development. This is no time for theories or rhetorics but for positive and concerted action against the menace of youth unemployment by government and non-governmental organizations as well as international donor organizations", the coordinator said.
In his opening remarks on the occasion, the Executive Director of POVINAA, Mr Nebechi Ugwuozor said the problem appeared to have been given mere lip service over the years, adding that much progress would have been made if concrete and sustained actions had been taken by all.
He said that the draft strategy document which was officially presented to UNDP during the workshop, had endeavoured to capture the existing situation in Enugu State with regard to youth empowerment programmes while at the same time proffering solutions to observed inadequacies.
He said, "we hope that government and other stakeholders would take advantage of this document and the findings of this workshop to reverse the unwholesome neglect of issues that pertain to the well being of young people here for we do not subscribe to the idea that one way of empowering young people is by inducing them to becoming 'Okada' (motorcycle) riders".
Ugwuozor commended the UNDP for its consistent efforts at sensitizing governments and people across the globe on the urgency of embarking on youth empowerment programmes.
Also speaking, the state Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Mr J.C Udeh, said the state government would support any programme or plan aimed at actualizing its goals at poverty eradication through rapid industrialization and creation of jobs.
He stressed that the government has put in place a solid plan of action for exploiting the industrial and commercial potentials of the state through the revitalization of ailing industries and the support for small scale entrepreneurs.
He added that with the active support of international donor agencies and non governmental organizations, it was expected that the state would one day become a success story in the area of youth empowerment.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2007 Daily Champion. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
