USAID gets advice from Tanzanian youth

In June, Restless Development facilitated a USAID consultation with 13 Tanzanian youth on the development of a new USAID youth policy. The young people asked for less "one-off" training, and more ongoing support for skill development. The young people also argued for more involvement of youth in development, implementation and monitoring of aid services, and that the services should be more accessible to young people. They also asked for more support for their efforts to educate adults on the importance of youth participation.

These Tanzanian youth asked USAID to recognize young people as experts on their own needs and priorities, and not just as the beneficiaries of services.

Youth Consultation with USAID

Human settlements youth summit to be held in South Africa

South African Human Settlements Minister Tokyo Sexwhale has called for a Human Settlements Youth Summit to increase youth involvement in designing future towns and cities in South Africa. On February 24 Sexwhale convened a roundtable meeting attended by over 50 leaders of South African youth organizations. A number of political and civil society organizations were also represented at the roundtable. Sexwhale told the roundtable participants,

We need young South Africans to take our vision forward, as we fully support the notion of "nothing about us without us." We want you to go back to your members and mobilise them behind the summit. We want you to prepare your thinking around this subject.

The summit is part of the Minister's Settlements 2030 Vision.

Media statement from the Human Settlements Ministry : Sexwhale calls on youth to get involved in the future of human settlements

Cameroon to establish national youth council

Elections will begin October 15 for a new Cameroon National Youth Council. Only members of organizations that have registered with the Ministry of Youth Affairs will be eligible to vote or stand for election. Candidates may run for election at the municipal, divisional, regional and national levels. Elections will run through the end of October.

Last January the government released the electoral code for the election of the Council's executive bureau. Concerns were raised at that time by youth organizations about the registration requirement and about a requirement that organizations intending to present candidates pay levies for the privilege of doing so. Fako Divisional Delegate of Youth Affairs Isaac Ikombe Mbua responded that the levies provide a way to discourage candidates who were not serious about standing for election. The fees run from FCFA 5,000 for an office at the local level to FCFA 50,000 for candidates running for President of the Executive Bureau.

The levies and registration requirement are a genuine concern as they will certainly limit the pool of candidates, and thus may lead to the election of a council that is not truly representative of the youth of Cameroon.

National Youth Council Set for Takeoff

Youth Counsellors Elections - Preparations Underway

International Youth Day

On the occasion of International Youth Day a number of politicians from around the world made statements about the importance of young people's participation in community leadership, politics and development. Stating one's support and actually providing that support are, of course two different things. Still, it's nice to hear (or read) politicians talking about youth participation.

Below is a sampling of news articles describing political leaders' statements on International Youth Day.

Gambia
VP Reiterates Gov't Commitment to Youth Empowerment

India
'More youth participation needed in India's decision-making'

Pakistan
Youth key partner for sustainable development of world: NA Speaker
Nourishing of youth imperative to put country on path of progress: Chairman Senate
'Unutilised' youth hope for participation in decision-making

The United Nations
SUSTAINABILITY: Our Challenge. Our future.

And last but not least, testimony from an actual young person to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Joint Committee on Election Laws:

Ethiopia/United States
Honoring International Youth Day - An Ethiopian Youth Activist's Perspective

Nigerian youth coalition demands representation on electoral commission

A coalition of students and youth organizations in Nigeria has called on the House of Representatives to adopt a constitutional amendment allowing for youth representation on the board of the country's Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The group, calling itself the Northern Youth Coalition on Electoral Reform, is also seeking to lower the minimum age requirement for serving in the House and Senate to 25 and 30 years, respectively.

The coalition wants to INEC board to include at least two members between the ages of 18 and 35 and points to Uganda's National Youth Statute of 1993 and Participation Act of 1995 as models for legislation.

According to the Northern Youth Coalition,

"Democracy is about numbers. Youths constitute a larger percentage of our population and so cannot be neglected. We have power in our numbers, therefore our interest must be reflected on INEC board."

Northern coalition wants representation on INEC Board

Gambian youth advocate for youth participation

Participants in the Third International Youth Summer School on Peace, which took place 24 July to 1 August in Janjangbureh, Gambia, have released an impressive statement urging NGOs, national governments and communities in Africa to support speedy implementation of the African Youth Charter. The young authors commit to continued advocacy, collaboration with their governments and other stakeholders, and continued involvement in peace education.

The document touches on disarmament, development, the media, sexual trafficking, good governance, diversity, democracy, human rights and more.

Youth advocate and Lobby For Speedy Domestication / implementation of African youth charter

Dear Senator...

This is not a news item, event, resource or opportunity, and I do not know who Maryam Uwais is but she makes an eloquent argument in favor of children's participation in public hearings and important policy decisions in a letter to Nigerian Senator Iyabo Obasanjo-Bello. Ms. Uwais criticizes Sen. Obasanjo-Bellow for not allowing children to speak at a recent hearing held to discuss a tobacco control bill, offers the Senator an explanation of the difference between a public hearing and a judicial hearing, and argues that the Nigerian constitution, the Child Rights Act of 2003 and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child all support the right of children to participate in such hearings.

"It is...regrettable that it is one of the main pillars of democracy, the Nigerian Senate, which purposefully denied children the opportunity to fulfill their rights and responsibilities, as entrenched under our Constitution, our laws and the African Charter. Cultural and religious prejudices towards children, coupled with our insecurities as adults, conveyed by a 'know-all' arrogance that continues to insist that we can speak for children and young persons (without listening to them) in matters that directly concern them, have only served as stumbling blocks to the realization of progress and development in our society.

Go Maryam!


Maryam Uwais' letter, "Know-All Arrogance is Stumbling Block to Progress"

Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria

Nigerian Child's Rights Act 2003

African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child

Kenya's youth council bill

There is a bill in the Kenyan Parliament to establish a national youth council whose functions would include, among other things:

• Registering youth groups and youth-focused community-based organizations:
• Promoting and popularizing official national youth policy, and facilitating the periodic review of said policy;
• Mobilizing resources to support and fund youth programs and initiatives;
• Lobbying for legislation on issues affecting youth;
• Liaising with other organizations to ensure youth have access to resources and services appropriate to their needs;
• Inspiring and promoting "the spirit of unity, patriotism, volunteerism and service among the youth";
• "[Acting] as a voice and bridge to ensure that the government and other policy makers are kept informed of the views and other aspirations of the youth";
• Promoting research on youth issues.

The bill, however, includes no requirement that its membership include actual youth. The membership requirements also make it unlikely that the members would be representative of the population as a whole. Members must have a university degree and 3 years of experience developing youth programs or projects.

For a critique of the bill, see this blog post.

New text on children and young people's participation

There's a new book out from Routledge called A Handbook of Children and Young People's Participation: Perspectives from Theory and Practice, by Barry Percy-Smith and Nigel Thomas. It's 400 pages and aimed at both scholars and practioners.

From the flyer:

Promoting the participation of children and young people--in decision-making and policy development, and as active contributors to everyday family and community life--has become a central part of policy and programme initiatives in both majority and minority worlds.

This book presents the most useful recent work in children’s participation as a resource for academics, students and practitioners in childhood studies, children’s rights and welfare, child and family social work, youth and community work, governance, aid and development programmes.

The book introduces key concepts and debates, and presents a rich collection of accounts of the diverse ways in which children’s participation is understood and enacted around the world, interspersed with reflective commentaries from adults and young people. It concludes with a number of substantial theoretical contributions that aim to take forward our understanding of children’s participation.

Some sample chapters:

• Challenges of participatory practice
• Armed conflict and post conflict peace building
• Participation of children in the most difficult situations
• Children’s participation in law reform in South Africa
• Disabled children and participation in the UK
• Participation among young people with mental health issue
• The construction of childhood and the socialisation of children in Ghana
• Youth participation in indigenous traditional communities
• Children’s participation in school and the local community
• Getting the measure of children and young people’s participation
• Challenging obstacles to the participation of children and young people in Rwanda
• Child reporters as agents of change
• Children’s participation in citizenship and governance
• The effectiveness of Youth Councils in Scotland
• Critiquing youth parliaments as models of representation for marginalised young people
• Children and deliberative democracy
• Governance and participation

Barry Percy-Smith is Reader in Childhood and Participatory Practice at the SOLAR Action Research Centre, University of the West of England, Bristol, UK.

Nigel Thomas is Professor of Childhood and Youth Research at the University of Central Lancashire, UK, and Co-Director of The Centre, which promotes and conducts research on children and young people’s participation.

A Handbook of Children and Young People's Participation will be available August 14, 2009.

More from Ghana

The Upper East Regional Office of the National Youth Council of Ghana held a regional dialog in Bolgatanga on Tuesday to discuss youth development and boost youth participation in community development decision-making.

Upper East Regional Minister Mark Woyongo stated that the government is committed to youth development and has appointed a number of young people to ministerial positions. According to Moyongo,

“The present Government is more committed to the development of a dynamic pro-youth, national youth policy to provide the appropriate platform for engaging the youth in matters affecting them and engaging them in civil responsibility debates as well as involving them in decision making."

Youth in Upper East Hold Regional Dialogue Forum in Bolgatanga

Junior 8 Summit 2009

Fourteen young people aged 14-17, from countries represented at the Group of 8 Summit being held in L'Aquila, Italy, today called on their respective leaders to get serious about climate change and education. These young people were part of the Junior 8 Summit 2009 in Rome, sponsored by UNICEF.

The Junior 8 Summit, or J8, is an annual forum where young people from around the world meet to share their concerns and recommendations on how to solve global issues with G8 leaders and the world community. The Summit is a parallel youth event to the annual Group of 8 (G8) Summit of world leaders.

This year's J8 event, taking place July 5-12, includes 54 youth from Brazil, Canada, China, Egypt, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, the U.K. and the U.S.

The 40 youth who did not take part in the G8 discussion visited Italy's Chamber of Deputies and presented their Rome Declaration to the Deputies. The Declaration includes sections on the following:

• Children's rights in the context of the global financial crisis;
• Climate change;
• Poverty and development in Africa; and
• Education.

Rome Declaration

African Youth & Governance Conference August 12-14, Ghana

The Youthbridge Foundation of Ghana is sponsoring an African Youth and Governance Conference in Accra, Ghana August 12-14. From the letter of invitation:

"The 3-day event is being organized to engage the youth in Africa in development dialogue with other stakeholders on governance in African countries and the continent as a whole. It will also have highlights on the ratification of the African Youth Charter and the Africa Union’s declaration of Decade of Youth Development in Africa."

The conference will be organized around three themes:
• Policy
• Participation and Empowerment
• Mobilization in Africa.

Registration closes July 6. For more information visit TakingITGlobal or the conference website.

Tunisian President touts youth engagement efforts

In an interview with Mark Newton, of the Oxford Business Group, Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali discussed some of his administration's accomplishments with respect to youth civic engagement. Among other things, President Ben Ali noted that the minimum age for membership in Parliament and municipal councils had been lowered to 23, and the voting age was lowered from 20 to 18.

According to President Ben Ali, hundreds of thousands of Tunisian youth participated in the government's "Dialogue with Youth" program in 2008, which seeks to include youth voices in policy development. The dialog led to the creation of a "Youth Pact," under which a commission will be established to formulate a national strategy for youth policy. Political participation of young people will be a key area of focus. President Ben Ali states,

I am convinced that involving youth in making decisions and in conceiving and formulating policy can only deepen their sense of responsibility.

Ben Ali: We have managed to accomplish a number of significant achievements in Tunisia

Zuma observes anniversary of students' uprising on 'Youth Day'

Durban, South Africa, June 16: While honoring the young people who died protesting apartheid 33 years ago, South African President Jacob Zuma promised that the country's National Youth Development Agency would "assist in promoting youth participation in democratic processes, community and civic decision-making and development at all levels."

Zuma observes anniversary of students' uprising on 'Youth Day'

Looks like some in South Africa have their doubts about this agency, however.

Moroccan youth eager to participate in communal elections

Note: This refers to elections that took place in Morocco June 12, but it's still pretty interesting.

Communal elections were held recently in Morocco. As the elections approached, observers noted a major difference from the last national poll. In 2007, young people seemed apathetic. This time, however, many young Moroccans planned to vote, or even stand for election themselves.

Some young Moroccans were skeptical:

“Whether we go to the ballot boxes or not, whether we defended our own existence and run in the elections or not, the situation will be the same,” university student Rachid complains.

“It's the same old clichés – democracy, change, transparency, and service of public interests – which can be seen in all party slogans and speeches by their leaders, but we don't see any implementation on the ground,” he says.

Others are more hopeful:

“Participation in communal elections this year represents a break with the past,” Younes Naoumi tells Magharebia. “It's also an opportunity for young people to defy the stereotype that some people give us as the weak link in building Moroccan society.”

Naoumi is among 25 candidates under 30 years old who will be on the ballot June 12th for local leadership positions in the Hay Mohammedi neighbourhood of Casablanca. He has a strong desire to change the traditional image of communal advisor because, to his view, communal officials have consistently failed to achieve the goals and needs of their constituents.

Morocco's National Institute for Youth and Democracy (NIYD) offered training and support for the young candidates. About forty young men and women were accompanied during the campaign by NIYD experts who advised them to be tolerant and to respect their competitors, and not to make false promises.

Moroccan youth eager to participate in communal elections