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Justify your inclusion… President challenges youth in govt

President John Dramani Maha­ma has thrown a challenge to young people in his gov­ernment to justify their inclusion.

He said their appointment to serve in various portfolio in his government as ministers and chief executives of state owned enter­prises was a test of how ready the youth were to take over the mantle of leadership.

Delivering the keynote address at the launch of the African Political Parties Network (APPI) in Accra on Friday, President Mahama said the future of Africa belonged to the youth and those in his government could not afford to disappoint.

In the estimation of the Pres­ident, he has assembled arguably the youngest government in Gha­na’s history and that those who got the opportunity must be good ambassadors.

According to him, the output of the crop of youthful people in his government would open more doors for young people in future governments.

He said with 60 per cent of the continent’s population under 25 years, the youth could not be left out at the decision-making table.

“The future of Africa will be determined by how the youth are engaged in governance and decision-making,” the President stated.

He said despite political consciousness on the continent, governance has not been strength­ened as political parties were more focused on short-term electoral cycles instead of long term vision.

The role of political parties, President Mahama said should not only be for electoral victo­ries but they must thrive to build sustainable systems that prioritises efficient governance.

The launch of the APPI, an initiative of the Africa Gover­nance Centre, was on the theme ‘Fostering Inter-party Cooperation and Effective Governance for Af­rica’s Economic Transformation’.

It is intended to foster coop­eration, strengthen democratic governance, and advance policy innovation among political parties across the African continent.

It brought participants from across the continent and is expect­ed to operate in all countries on the continent.

Chairman of the occasion, Jeffrey Thamsanqa Radebe, Chair of the Advisory Board of the Africa Governance Centre, said the Initiative was committed to building the capacities of political parties in the democratic space.

Governments, he said, must be rooted in cooperation and not conflict to enhance governance.  

BY JULIUS YAO PETETSI

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