Zuarungu (UE) Jan. 18, GNA – Chief Issah Ibrahim, the Executive Director of Integrated Youth Needs and welfare (INTYON) in the Upper East Region, has advised the youth to avoid relying on their peers for solutions to their challenges.
He said the high unemployment rate has led some young people to succumb to peer pressure and urged them, especially school drop outs, to take advantage of government interventions to make life meaningful for themselves.
He said indiscipline, robbery and idle youth playing draught and card playing groups are increasing daily in the region and some interventions are needed to take them off the streets.
The INTYON is a youth welfare organization engaged in advocacy and youth empowerment.
Mr Ibrahim gave this advice in an interview with the Ghana News Agency at the office of INTYON in Zuarungu in the Bolgatanga East District.
He called on government to probe the needs of youth and tailor sustainable interventions for them.
He said though the agricultural policies and interventions such as the Planting for food and Jobs (PFJs) and Rearing for Food and Jobs (RFJs) were laudable, many young people still found farming a disincentive because of lack of market and support centres for the produce.
“Setting up centres where government can absorb the produce cultivated by the youth can be a source of encouragement and for more youth to undertake farming as a business,” Mr Ibrahim suggested.
The Director said youth in school and non- school going ages have over the years attended peer educational programmes at INTYON operational areas in the Upper East Region and many of them are currently in positions of trust and contributing positively to the nation’s development.
“If you don’t have a project that would attract and bring together the idle youth to learn, they would relapse and return to their old lifestyles”, he said.
Mr Timothy Nsoh, the Project Coordinator of INTYON, said many young people were eager for employment and skills training was also crucial and called on government and benevolent organizations to support the youth to access start- up capital to undertake income generating activities.
Madam Judith Abazuri, the field Officer of INTYON, who spelt out some of the adolescent and childcare, HIV/AIDs education interventions ran by her outfit, said the interventions, supported by their partners, has yielded positive outcomes.
