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| YOUTH EMBRACING ICT: Is It The Way For Involvement In Policy Making And Development? |
 PRINTABLE VERSION |
Every time you will hear the youth saying that we have to be included in the policy making processes. This is a positive move; however, there are some fundamental questions that we have to ask ourselves. “How can we be involved?” “How well can we participate?” and also, “To what extend, or rather what would constitute inclusion in decision making processes?” These are questions that would be important in gaging the successes and failures that we meet in the processes of searching for our footing.
Many of us have been, either consciously, or subconsciously, involved in the process of policy making and development. Take for instance; when you give your idea in a political rally, it is mostly apparent that there will be someone interested on your idea even if it will not be exactly the same as you had wanted it to be. Most leaders tend to think that one has to be a part of the system to change the system. This might be true, however, it has been recorded that the best changes ever made for humanity have always been from the outside forces.
Take for instance, Martin Luther King, who was the best African American activist Americans ever had in years, he did not become part of the system to bring about changes that the most powerful Nation in the world enjoys now. The various human rights activists all over the world who fight for the rights of children, rights of women, rights of everybody are not in most cases part of the systems. It has also been evident that once a person joins the system, then it becomes very difficult to continue to agitate for change of policies that govern them. This is quite clear in much world leadership we have all over the world.
What does this imply? Well, we can say that we are the ones to bring changes with or without being involved in the systems. As the saying goes, there are many ways to kill a cat and one only has to go with the one that is of convenience to him or her.
So the next question is what is the best way forward for our inclusion and involvement in the policy and development matters both at the local and global set up? It is not like saying that we can not be in the policy development system and succeed. What this article is trying to highlight is the fact that there are many ways we as the youth can get involved in the processes of development and creation of change. The most important start is the use of the available tool for us and that is the use of the internet positively.
The internet has been on of the most developed technology ever to be development in the current generation. People use it for blogs, video conferencing, and any other thing that one may think of. However, it is a known fact that many also use it for other heinous offenses. This, yet, does not mean that we can not employ the internet for making our voices heard. The many sprouting youth forums give us exactly the media for our views to be aired to a much greater audience than when we are involved in the systems. A good example is the Taking It Global website.
I have had such incidences where a fellow classmate had gone to look for some information on the internet on a particular topic; I was surprised when one of the authors of the information he was searching for was a member of TIG. This strengthens the argument that TIG offers members the opportunity to contribute in global as well as local matters and in the process, help the policy makers and development partners come with policies through the search of ideas from potential youth leaders just as the student was able to benefit from the article found from the TIG member.
The bottom line therefore is that we can use the ICT for better communication and involvement in potential activities geared towards creating good policies and development programs.
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Writer Profile
Erick Ochieng Otieno
I was a student from Egerton University. I pursued a course leading to a BSc in Applied Aquatic Sciences. I believe that through writing, one can relieve a lot from the heart. Inspiration came from hearing and reading. Whoever said that you have to be an old one to communicate issues of policies, did not consider that even a newborn communicates through its own way, "crying". I would like to communicate to the world all my thoughts; However minor they are, I believe they will go a great length to straighten or strengthen a policy or two somewhere and I shall have contributed to the well being of the world. How noble that is, it is for my worthy readers to let me know. So what do you think? Tell me anytime. Bye and have a nice reading.
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