He said their exposure to technology and digital advancements put them in a better place to undertake activities that promote the development of the Africa.

The Minister, who was speaking at the opening of the 8^th  African Union Youth Volunteer Corps being hosted in Accra, said, “African youth have a lot to offer, the continent is yours so make good use of it.”

He added that, “there are many of us who are leaving the continent to Europe, but they forget you can make it here, Africa is rich, we have everything here, you just have to be innovative to reach your goal, stay focus and you will succeed.”

The Chief Executive Officer of the National Youth Authority, Emmanuel Asigri als0 charged African leaders to formulate programmes and policies that will develop the capacity of their youth.

He noted that the current crop of leaders on the continent could be said to have failed the youth, adding that they owe it a duty to make the lives of young people better.

“Africa is back to the drawing board because our leaders have failed us, corruption, poverty and disease,’ he noted.’

About AU Youth Volunteer Corps

AU-YVC is a continental development program that recruits and works with youth volunteers, to work in all 54 countries across the African Union.

AU-YVC promotes volunteering to deepen the status of young people in Africa as key participants in the delivery of Africa’s human development targets and goals.

It brings people together to share skills, knowledge, creativity and learning to build a more integrated Continent, and by implication strengthen Africa’s relevance in the globalized world.

The concept is in line with the African Youth Charter as well as the Decision of AU Heads of States and Governments in Assembly to set up a continental Volunteer initiative.

AU-YVC was officially launched on the 3rd of December 2010 in Abuja, Nigeria

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By: citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Mr. Asiamah together with Prof. Emmanuel Oduro Owusu, the Vice Chancellor of the University, had a thorough inspection of the 14-year-old edifice, which is yet to be completed.

In an interview with the media, Mr. Isaac Asiamah pledged that the incumbent government would fulfill their promise of completing the multi-purpose edifice before their first term of office ends.

“Our government initiated this project some years ago and we are going to complete it as soon as possible. I want to assure the University community that Nana Akufo Addo, the president of this country is directly interested in ensuring that this edifice would see the light of day.”

“We are going to make sure that we have a modern sports stadium for the University of Ghana.” Mr. Asiamah said.

The minister added that, after a thorough assessment of the stadium, about sixteen million dollars ($16m) would be needed to get it completed.

“Sixteen million dollars ($16m) would be required to finish the project. we have had several discussions to generate income for it. The most important thing is that there is commitment, so the funding arrangement would certainly be done” He said.

Mr. Asiamah also expressed gratitude to Prof. Emmanuel Oduro Owusu for showing interest in getting the work done.

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Source: GNA

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The Minister arrived at the venue for the event at the advertised time of 9:00am, but after waiting for about 30 minutes, he decided to leave.

He was slated to give a speech at the Congress to open the event. The speech would have been the Minister’s first major public one since he was sworn into office.

The incident was confirmed to Citi Sports by officials of the Ghana Olympic Committee and the spokesperson of the Sports Ministry, Elvis Adjei-Baah.

Adjei-Baah went on to state that the Minister’s action was a follow-through on President Nana Akuffo-Addo’s calls on public appointees to respect time. He gave his admonition when he gave his State of the Nation to Parliament on February 21.

“Mr Speaker, there are some areas of our lives in which we can all demonstrate the change for which the people of Ghana have voted: punctuality, sanitation and the care of the environment. Over the years, it has become acceptable for official functions to invariably start and close late. We invite people to functions for 9:00am and start at 10:00am.”

“I have heard some offer the preposterous excuse that there is something cultural about not paying attention to time. Mr Speaker, let us show that we acknowledge that change has indeed come by being punctual to functions. I intend to set a personal example.”

The Minister’s speech was read on his behalf by Director General of the National Sports Authority, Joe Kpenge.

The GOC’s Elective Congress is to vote for a new administration to run the affairs of the committee for a four-year term.

The current President of the committee, Prof. Francis Dodoo, will go against Ben Nunoo Mensah, President of the Ghana Weightlifting Federation for the position of president.

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This is the first time in many years that a sector Minister has met leaders of youth groups, as the Ministry has been accused of focusing largely on sports at the expense of youth development.

The groups were the National Youth Authority, Ghana Scout Association, Ghana Girl Guides Association and the National Cadet Corps Ghana.

The others were from the Head of State Award Scheme, Boys and Girls Brigade and the Ghana Red Cross Association.

Mr. Asiamah reiterated the government’s commitment to ensuring that the youth constitute the major source of human capital for the country’s transformational agenda.

He said, ‘the active population of the country is the youth, and therefore much attention should be given to them’.’

The Minister further assured the groups of efforts to ensure that they receive the needed support from the ministry.

The Chief Commissioner of the Ghana Girl Guides Association, Mrs. Zakiya Abdul Wahab, who spoke on behalf of the groups, commended the Minister for his plans to support the activities of the respective groups.

She said she was optimistic that with such support from the Ministry, they can significantly help mobilize and improve the human capital requirements needed for the socio-economic development of the nation.

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By: citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Youth and Sports minister meets ‘neglected’ youth groups appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

According to him, there are enough mechanisms set up to check the phenomenon, however, much seriousness have not been attached to it.

He said various stakeholders and parliament’s select committee on Sports, need to ensure that the various government agencies in sports are accountable as a way of dealing with corruption in the sector.

Speaking before Parliament’s Appointments Committee on Tuesday [February 7, 2017], Mr. Asiamah said dealing with corruption in the sports must not be considered a duty of only the Sports Ministry, but that all stakeholders must get involved.

“We must ensure that whatever we do, there is transparency and accountability, so if there is accountability in the process we can fight corruption. There are enough accountability mechanisms in place to check any ministry if we are serious with fighting corruption.  There are enough accountability mechanisms but it is about how serious we are as a country.”

“Parliament, our job is to fight corruption, so we are all equally responsible for fighting corruption.”

He called on Parliament for assistance to aid the Ministry of Sports to carry out its mandate effectively.

Isaac Asiamah also noted that, he would ensure that the Ghana Football Association (GFA),  routes all of its programmes and documentations through the National Sports Authority, rather than have direct interaction with the Sports Ministry.

There has been a long standing rift between the Ghana Football Association and the Ministry of Sports, over the latter’s interference in the activities of the Football Association, and the senior national soccer team, the Black Stars.

He expressed concerns that there were some regions in the country that do not have sporting clubs, adding that there was the need for at least a club in each region as a way of promoting local football.

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By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @jnyabor

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