Youth

Development is vital for any nation’s growth, and the most important people who have the greatest role in a nation’s development are the youths. Youths become dynamic in their actions and play distinct roles in the growth and development of any nation. They must possess the ability to make choices that align with the pursuit of educational goals and develop life skills, which are paramount for national and local leadership positions.   Indeed, youths are like the backbone of institutions and have the propensity and strength to change the dynamic for a new paradigm shift in society. Youths are the nation’s strength; their individual characteristics, energy, and capabilities support the body politic. They also form a sensitive age group that harbours dreams for necessary social changes. The development of Nations is fully dependent on the abilities of the youths. This power of the youths needs to be positively utilized across all sectors like health, education, technology, business, trade, banking, transportation, etc. and integrated with moral value education to spread love, peace and welfare throughout the nation. Ignoring youths’ maximum commitment and engagement in national development today will have dire consequences. To better understand how to move the youth’s future towards national growth and development, there must be a careful examination of the rationale for expanding the youth’s frontier for active participation in national development. If youths are greatly involved in national development, it clearly shows that their potential as change agents in mostly civil society is being highly recognized. Youths have a greater space in national development that they must consciously occupy, for national development does not only involve the implementation of political and economic policies and action programs that will improve the lives of the ordinary citizenry, but also must recognize the values and other aspects of the state that would act as a national catalyst to unite the people. Having an open mind of how we intend to contribute to the economic growth and development of the state is something that has been thought of overtime even before a popular administration took over. Our education is one of the important factors discussed by the old and young folks in our society. We have seen that education is a way to bring youths to the national theater. The primary role of education is positioning and providing youths with access to effective engagement in national development, which is also a way of incorporating them in the decision-making process of the nation’s government and nation-building activities where they are welcomed, with accurate and comprehensive information will empower them to make healthy decisions. However, the current prevailing circumstances in our country have extenuated the potential of youths as agents of social change and future leaders. We have understood that these problems range from economic, social and cultural activities. The sensitivity of the youths has been greatly challenged due to their entrapment into the treacherous circle of unemployment, poverty and illiteracy. Those who studied sociology referred to this as “attitude of fatalism, resignation and acceptance of the situation.” The persistence of these social problems has resulted in an environment where youths are now cheaply available for manipulation by self-seeking politicians who engage them to satisfy their wants, such as voter intimidation, unnecessary protest, election vandalism etc. Poverty, illiteracy, sexism and unemployment are interrelated circumstances that generate human needs and, therefore, constitute a state of deprivation. As the youth continue to remain in this state, there a pent-up emotions and untapped energies. They provide cheap labour to execute the design of political gladiators and ethnic champions. There is an urgent need to look into these situations and signal society to reconsider its decision on the participation of youths in nation-building. Youths are critical thinkers in society. They are the firebrand tools that paddle the wheel of a Nation to its great path of development. Youths must be highly engaged and incorporated into entire national development as a whole. We are aware that the essence of youth participation in national development is to promote ownership and sustainability of change of interventions, strengthen their abilities to meet their own subsistence needs and wants, prevent and reduce vulnerabilities to an economic, political and socially unstable environment, also to reduce illegal activities such as kidnapping, theft, online scam, oil vandalism etc. to help gain entry into target communities and build up trust and social capital.