Youth in the Upper West Region have appealed to government to meaningfully incorporate their ideas and concerns in the formulation of the National Action Plan (NAP) on Youth, Peace, and Security (YPS).
Speaking at a stakeholders’ consultative meeting in Wa, Mr James Baba Anabiga, a former Speaker of the Upper West Regional Youth Parliament, noted that though young people were often invited to participate in discussions on national development issues, their contributions were sometimes overlooked in final policy documents.
The engagement, organised by the National Youth Authority (NYA), aimed to provide a platform for regional stakeholders to contribute to an inclusive and implementable National Action Plan on Youth, Peace, and Security.
The government, through the Ministry of Youth Development and Empowerment, had constituted a Technical Working Group to guide the Plan’s development, with nationwide consultations to ensure regional perspectives informed the framework.
The two-day meeting brought together youth representatives, including Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) on the first day and heads of departments from ministries and agencies, civil society organisations (CSOs), security agencies, religious and traditional institutions, among others, on the second day.
Mr Anabiga commended the NYA and the Ministry for the initiative but stressed that youth participation should not be a mere formality but a deliberate move to include their views in the Plan.
“We are living in a country that often engages youth only to satisfy donor requirements, but in the end, our views are not taken into consideration. The committee or group developing this plan must carefully consider the issues raised by young people here,” he said.
Mrs Vida Addi, the Upper West Regional Director of the NYA, explained that the YPS NAP was part of Ghana’s efforts to domesticate UN Security Council Resolutions 2250 (2015), 2419 (2018), and 2535 (2020), which seek to promote the global YPS Agenda.
She noted that these Resolutions recognise young people not only as victims of conflict but also as key actors in conflict prevention, peacebuilding, and social cohesion.
Mrs Addi assured participants that the inputs from the Upper West consultation would be integrated into the national framework under the plan’s various pillars.
Mr Issah Toha Shamsoo, a Member of the Technical Working Group on the YPS Strategy, recognised that young people played a central role in matters of peace and security in the country.
He, therefore, emphasised the need to amend the National Peace Council (NPC) Act to ensure youth representation in the Council.
Mr Shamsoo, also the Executive Director of ASFIT, added that consultations were necessary because youth were a heterogeneous group, and no single intervention could address their diverse needs and aspirations.
The participants identified national and regional priorities, strategic interventions, and institutional roles necessary for the effective implementation of the plan based on the five pillars of the framework.
They were participation, protection, prevention, partnership, and disengagement and reintegration.
Key priorities highlighted included the provision of recreational facilities, expansion of rehabilitation services, investment in sustainable jobs and livelihoods, and strengthening stakeholder coordination.
