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| What kenya needs to spur growth and development: a youthful perspective |
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The fact that many an old guard in Kenya have adamantly perpetuated the ‘seedy’ culture of excluding the youth from the socio-economic discussions of the country spells doom for its development aspirations. It has not been surprising then to witness the blatant neglect, mass unemployment and abject poverty facing the Kenyan youth. Many of them have therefore resorted to uncontrolled drug abuse, crime, prostitution and irresponsible sexual behavior as a result of hopelessness and idleness. Voiceless and colloquially toothless youth forums like the Kenya National Youth Parliament should be given more advocating ‘teeth’ to promote the interests of the youth in the policy debates and economic running of the country, rather than the cipher and figurehead role that they are currently forced to put up with.
However, the work done by such other organizations as the Youth Employment Summit-Kenya is commendable and should be promoted at all costs. The organization, even though still relatively young in the country, has greatly managed to drum up support for the consideration of the youth in employment opportunities. Indeed, in the year 2006, they will host a global conference, the YES International Conference where various factors affecting the youth employment possibilities and their improvement will be discussed in Nairobi, Kenya. Putting the youth at the top of the development agenda should be the Kenyan government’s first concern if they indeed care about the future heritage of the nation. This would involve the creation of intensely youth-focused Small Micro Enterprise development organizations, whose major objective would be to economically empower the youth in doing productive work in the society. The Kenyan government deserves commendation for its programs aimed at educating the poor youth. This however, still needs to be improved further with stringent rules made to deter the rich and non-deserving from getting the support through ‘backdoor’ means.
To deter corruption and wanton “plutocracy”, as has been witnessed in the recent past in Kenya; long prison sentences should be preferred on the caught suspects. At the same time, they should be made to return all the illegally acquired public funds, which should then be diverted to various development projects in the country. Those people being elected and appointed to head public offices, parastatals and other government agencies should be vetted for transparency and accountability. They should be made to account for their past lives and if not credible, be promptly censored from taking over any public office. Here, the protection and proper handling of public funds will be safeguarded since they will be left in the hands of responsible and credible leaders.
As a developing country, Kenya still has several strides to make in its development aspirations if it is to catch up with the developed world and especially the Asian Tiger economies such as China, Taiwan, South Korea, Malaysia and Singapore. With the implementation of noble policies such as those indicated above, the economic growth of the country will take a positively upward trend. In addition, they will help alleviate its perennial food security, poverty, mass youth unemployment and underdevelopment problems.
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Antony Felix O. Simbowo
TakingITGlobal has never been more apt than it is now in providing a forum for expression. This is because the dynamic world has undeveloped challenges that pose a great problem to the growth and daily life of any youth in the global society. What with the incessant wars, poverty, HIV/AIDS, pornography, racism and several other vices creeping into the society in a culture best objectified as vicious gradualism.
Here is where writing comes in handy and the TakingITGlobal literati, glitterati and pundits alike have provided a vital conduit through which these vices, positive and negative dynamism can be expressed.
I am saddened for example, when a promising youth is reduced to a hopeless parasite by drugs. More saddening is when I see the mercilessness, the hopelessness, the dereliction, the lack of love that many children, youth and people are subjected to due to wars, poverty, pornography and such as other negativities which silently and slowly kill the spirit and will within humans! Having gone through such experiences myself, I pray that God gives me the massive ability to be able to help these people to the best of my ability with His guidance, provision and protection. I have often wondered whether the expression "do unto others what you would have them do unto you" is being subjected to relativity. These are the problems which need highlighting and what better forum is there than TakingITGlobal.
I am privileged to be part of this ideologically vimmed and gustoed community.
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