By Nelson Manneh
The Minister of Youth and Sport, Bakary Badjie, yesterday Tuesday 17th December 2024, addressed 2,014 delegates who are taking part in the National Youth Conference and Festival being hosted by the Kanifing Municipality.
Mr Badjie said the conference is a crucial part of NAYCONF and creates the needed platform for young people to interact, share and live their experiences, and participate in substantive issue-based discussions, all of which will guide the development of actionable resolutions that are beneficial to the overall development and empowerment of young people across the country.
“Bringing together 200 youth leaders from the regions and national organizations, the conference component of NAYCONF provides a unique avenue for young people joined by experts, to hold constructive conversations on issues hindering the vibrant socio-economic development of the youth, and to explore sustainable measures to ensure the mitigation of identified barriers hindering the enhanced mainstreaming of youth in development sectors, build lasting connections and most importantly, identify strategic and attainable measures that can be applied to achieve the strengthened empowerment of Gambian youth in all walks of life,” he said.
Mr Badjie said to reflect their shared vision for national development, this year’s NAYCONF theme focuses on the enhancement of youth participation in the attainment of the recovery-focused National Development Plan (NDP).
Constituting the most significant part of The Gambia’s population, the Youth Minister said the inclusion and participation of youth are central to the sustainable and impactful realization of all strategic priorities of the country’s development blueprint – the NDP.
“With seven strategic pillars, the recovery-focused NDP seeks to build a community that is resilient and can thrive in the face of crises; uphold the fundamental values of democratic governance through the realization of constitutional, legal, and institutional reforms; achieve macroeconomic stability and inclusive growth leading to the reduction of poverty and the creation of employment; strengthen climate resilience and the agricultural sector; ensure the empowerment and social inclusion of citizens and finally, promote ICT connectivity and infrastructural development. Recognizing the valuable contribution of young people to national development, youth development has been mainstreamed in the different pillars that have been prioritized in the 2023-2027 RF NDP,” he stated.
With this strong and inclusive background, Minister Badjie reiterated the participation of youth is not only necessary but core to the attainment of the NDP.
Guided by the priorities of the RF NDP, he said his Ministry has achieved significant milestones through the provision of training and funding opportunities for young entrepreneurs, the implementation of projects aimed at promoting the involvement of youth in democratic governance processes, and the creation of avenues for skills acquisition.
“As you gather here for the next few days to take part in thematic sessions that are connected to the country’s development plan, I would like to urge you all to be reminded of your ability to contribute to socio-cultural and economic growth and your collective responsibilities, to be actively involved in efforts to advance a sustainable, united, progressive and resilient future for The Gambia,” he said.
He said the knowledge and ideas that will be shared and the recommendations that will be agreed upon at the conference, will provide valuable guidance to his Ministry and other relevant government institutions to further strengthen the empowerment of Gambian youth in different sectors of development.
Modou Lamin Davids, the Chairperson of the conference said NAYCONF was initially referred to Youth Week in the first republic because it brings together young people from across the country to showcase and compete in sporting activities.
He, however, said that since the ushering in of the second republic, the name was changed from Youth Week to the National Youth Conference and Festival to incorporate the conference component of this important activity.
“The reason we are seated here today and will continue to sit and discuss in the coming days as conference delegates from our respective regions and youth organizations, is to look at eight thematic areas such as Employment, Education and Entrepreneurship, Youth Migration Management, Peace, Security and Justice ICT Youth Leadership and Political Participation, SGBV, SRHR and HIV/AIDS Youth in creative industry sports and environment, Climate change and biodiversity,” he said.
He said the conference delegates will be divided into these different thematic classes, to converse, engage and come up with actionable resolutions and calls to action, at the end of the conference.
