Actionaid Nigeria (AAN), in partnership with Participation Initiative Behavioural Change in Development (PIBCID), has charged government at all levels to always engage youth in policy making.
It gave the charge Friday during a one-day policy dialogue on Youth Development/Validation of United Nation Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) in Lokoja, Kogi state.
Speaking with newsmen at the event, the executive director, PIBCID, Halima Oyiza Sadiq, said involving the youth in government policy-making, especially as it has to do with peace and security, “is key towards ending violent extremism.”
“Until the youth are involve and government creating platforms for the youth to thrive, restiveness and all other social vices may be difficult to curtail. We are here for policy dialogue on youth development.
Talking about youth peace and security in this context, we are not talking about youth as perpetrators in violent extremism, we are talking about youth participation and resolution in government policies.
“If you want to talk about youth development, you have to involve the youth. When you de-radicalise the youth, you need to reintegrate them, so they don’t go back into violence extremism,” she said.
Speaking on the delay in making the Kogi state youth development commission law functional, the Commissioner for Youth and Sport, Musa Isa, said the law was already being assented to by the governor, and gave the assurance that its operationalisation “will commence soon.”
“By the time the Commission is operational, international organisations would rather come direct to the Commission to engage the youth and not necessarily going through the government.” he said.
