Francis Tim Mbom
3 April 2008
A Congolese-born theologian, Rev. Dr. Ka Mana, has said for Africa to forge ahead, the youths must be given a fair chance to participate fully in the policy making and development process of the various governments.
Rev. Ka Mana, a lecturer at the Higher Institute of Pedagogy, IPSOM, in Bafoussam, was addressing participants drawn from several African countries at the opening of a five-day seminar on Tuesday, March 25, at the Seme New Beach Hotel, Limbe.
The seminar brought together participants from some of the crisis-stricken countries in Africa: Cameroon, Kenya, Senegal, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali and others.
According to one of the facilitators of the seminar, Flaubert Djateng, the main objective was for the participants to brainstorm on the problems of the youths in today's Africa; try to create and build a mutual avenue of understanding between the youths and the leaders as well as chart out a new avenue of better cooperation for development in the different African countries.
Presenting a paper on "Youths, Society and the Individual,' Rev. Ka Mana said in Africa today, there were many a youths with brilliant ideas and dreams for a better Africa but they do not have the opportunity to realise these dreams or ideas.
Taking the case of Cameroon, Rev. Ka Mana said the quick drive to label every failure or error made by the Cameroon government as being typical of Cameroon and allowing it to be nurtured as though it were a virtue, has rather been destructive.
He expressed regret that this system has created a mentality where every social mistake government makes is quickly dismissed with a wave of the hand or simply taken for granted as 'c'est le Cameroun."
In addition, Rev. Ka Mana said the failure of creating or giving opportunities to the youths has rather created a band of demoralised youngsters. In turn, the youths have tended to develop a kind of a survivalist strategy where Cameroon may end breeding a band of con artists.
The seminar was organised in collaboration with a German-based religious NGO, Church Development Service (Evangelischer Entwicklungsdienst-eed) led by Dr. Konrad von Bonin.
Briefing The Post, Dr. Konrad von Bonin said their coming to Cameroon was partly spurred by the tensions that rocked Kenya, Cameroon, Mali and other African countries.
According to him, education and sensitisation are necessary to build a better relationship between the governments and the youths.EED, he said, is a group of Protestant Church organisations in Germany with branches in over 70 countries with Cameroon being one.
He added that their mission was to support programmes of their partners and most of them are church related like Zenu Network in Cameroon.The seminar which ended on Saturday, March 29, also saw participants treated to issues like sexual exploitation of the youths in Africa; youths in the process of local government; the youths and difficulties: a case study of the recent strike in Cameroon.
The seminar had as resource persons: Rev. Ka Mana, Pastor Kamgue Simo of College Evangelique Cameroun, Willy Mbongolo from CRAFOD, the DRC and Gerard Nouton from ADEID Cameroun, Zenu Network and others.
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