The National Action Plan (NAP) on Youth, Peace and Security is to serve as a strategic blueprint, for empowering and engaging the youth.
This will enable the youth to contribute meaningfully to peace and security, Major General Richard Addo Gyane, the Commandant of the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC), has said.
‘…with our wealth of experience and commitment to excellence, we are well-positioned to navigate the complexities and nuances of this task of leading the technical development of the policy’, he added.
Major General Gyane was speaking at the first stakeholders meeting on the development of a National Action Plan (NAP) on Youth, Peace, and Security at the KAIPTC in Accra.
Participants included representatives of youth groups, international organizations, civil society organisations and some state agencies.
Major General Gyane said the success of the NAP hinged on collaborative efforts to ensure the brainstorming, needs assessments, and policy formulation aligned with
international best practices and Ghana’s specific context.
Mr Pius Enam Hadzide, the Chief Executive Officer of the National Youth Authority (NYA), said, ‘the NYA is committed to inclusivity, guaranteeing that the voices of our youth are not only heard but integral to the shaping of our policies.’
He announced that the Government, was committed to allocating adequate financial resources for the implementation of the action plan.
‘Driven by this goal, we will launch capacity-building programs that equip our youth with the essential tools for conflict resolution, dialogue facilitation, and community-based peacebuilding.
‘Alongside these efforts, we are unwavering in our pursuit of instilling a culture of non-violence, countering extremism through the power of education and understanding,’ Mr Hadzide said.
Mr George Amoh, the Executive Secretary of the National Peace Council, urged stakeholders to understand that the youth were a critical human resource, and ‘our approach to managing them will determine whe
ther they become valuable assets or potential liabilities’.
He said, the Council, recognising the crucial role of young people in building sustainable peace and security, has established a Youth Peace and Security desk to have targeted youth programmes.
Mr Amoh expressed hope that the Action Plan would help to address the challenges faced by young people across the country, particularly in conflict and post-conflict areas.
The NAP on Youth, Peace and Security initiative is a pilot programmeg led by the Women, Youth, Peace and Security Institute (WYPSI) of the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC) in partnership with the National Youth Authority (NYA).
It aims at translating the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2250 into concrete actions, harnessing the potential of young people for sustainable peace and security.
The UN Resolution 2250 calls for the development of National Action Plans on Youth, Peace, and Security, to provide a framework for governments to address the
unique challenges faced by young people and harness their potential as agents of positive change.
Ghana is part of a select group of nations, including the Democratic Republic of Congo and Nigeria, undertaking their respective National Action Plan on Youth, Peace and Security project projects.
Ghana’s NAP would ensure that young people have access to education and employment, so they could contribute positively to peacebuilding and sustainable development.
Source: Ghana News Agency