Sierra Leone is emerging from a period of post conflict reconstruction following a decade of civil war that began in 1991 and destroyed most of the country’s social economic and physical infrastructure. The war led to the displacement of two million people almost half the country’s population the death of over 20,000 people measurable suffering. At the conflict ay class of marginalized young people, especially from rural areas, lacking education and access to livelihood opportunities. Because of the involvement of youths in the conflict, the situation of today’s youths is a major concern for policy makers. Furthermore, according to the Government of Sierra Leone (GOSL) and the Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) the high number of idle youths could undermine development interventions and ultimately has the potential to create a threat to recent stability of the country. Many unemployed youths are illiterate, have no employable skills, and little working experience in good part due to the conflict, which affected the formative years of today’s youths.
Sierra Leone has a very young population. The country has a population of 4.9 million, 34 percent which live in urban areas, 42 percent of the population are below 15 years old and around 34 percent are between 15 and 35 years old, which is the definition of youths in the country. It was due to this grim realities that NAYD-SIERRA LEONE was established to encourage peace, justice, hard work, patriotism and human rights, fighting against HIV/AIDS, creating awareness on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), youth participation, capacity building for young people and other positive social values through workshops, conferences, trainings and seminars in order to have sustainable development in Sierra Leone.
The country representative for NAYDS/L Mr. Alpha Beretay informed members that she received an email from the CEO of NAYD International and asked the chairman to read the email for members. The following are what contained in the email; The CEO acknowledged the constrain face in establishing NAYD-country offices and take in to consideration the financial handicap. She added that, ‘’ I hope that together our effort will not go in vein, but will change positively the fate of our dear continent and make our collective lives much better’’.
In her email, she highlighted two significant issues:
1. The first is the NAYD Value Shares Programme -Names of NAYD Sierra Leone’s resource persons – Possible month that NAYD hope to host the first workshop List of possible partners that NAYD wish to contact.
2. The involvement of individual members that have joined through the web. The CEO stressed that all country coordinators should ensure that these members are involve in NAYD’s activities. Matters Arising: The country Representative for YAI Ms Yeanoh Conteh expressed concern with regard the web chatting weather any of the members of NAYD took part?. In a very responsive manner, Mr. Alpha Beretay said no, but an apology email was sent to the CEO for not participating on the web conference but however, they hope to participate on the next web conference.
Mr. Abdulai AbuBakarr Sesay informed members that he has through with the letter head as members agreed to send the letter head to the CEO for approval. The proposed month for NAYD Value Shares Programme has scheduled for March 2008 by members
The Way Forward: Members agreed that we hold a radio programme on Cotton Tree News (CTN) with the programme ‘’CTN Youth Club’’ and radio UN whether with DJ Base or any other programme on radio UN. As this will serve as recipe in explaining the concept of NAYD to the Youth and the people of Sierra Leone.
The Importance of Human Rights
Education in Africa today
It is evident that the majority of people in Africa each day are
denied of their basic human rights by individuals, government or social groups knowingly or unknowingly. This is because the issue of people’s rights is only becoming new to many Africans considering the poverty rate in Africa, civil war, rapes, injustices, etc. One needs not to have a second thought of the need for human rights education in every sectors of our African society. Human rights education is very important in Africa today since it will help people know and understand that like every other person they are entitled to the same basic rights. It will help us understand and respect each other rights and many of the violence we unconsciously rained on one another will be avoided.It will help fight poverty and injustices in Africa. It will help us speak out for our rights and the rights of those who can not speak for themselves.
The issue of child labor, girl’s education, gender equality and equal opportunity will be addressed. It will promote and encourage good governance in Africa and help us practice democratic principle to the letter. It will give hope and future to many Africans especially children and women who are most abused in Africa.
Young People Participation: It is a great opportunity for youth leaders, NGOs, and students to participate. I feel it is important to be part of a global initiative which relate to human rights, HIV/AIDS, etc. When a person is train morally and/or constructively, that person becomes more creative or desirous in his/her community or group.
* to learn from experts and practically implement.
* to educate other peer groups and youth leaders in and around Africa.
* to help minimize or eradicate problems that is dangerous in our society today.
* to learn about human rights and good governance that will foster peace building.
* to collaborate with peer groups, youth organizations, and Youth leaders around the world to establish networks that will promote human rights, sustainable development, and peace building. ? Thomas Mitchel
Orphans as our Collective Responsibility
To start, I will firstly define the word orphan and collective responsibility: An orphan is achild whose parents are both dead. Two categories of orphans exist:
1) Vulnerable and 2) Invulnerable orphans. Vulnerable orphans are those orphaned whose survival depends wholly on adults and invulnerable orphans are those orphaned children who are now adult and could work and successfully earn their living. I wonder how many invulnerable orphans we are having in our country, but unfortunately I am not concern with the invulnerable orphans. Rather I am mainly focusing on the vulnerable orphans. That is why I will again defined the term collective responsibility: Collective responsibility refers to a duty that certain group of people consciously share among themselves for a specific and usually positive objectives, If the issue of Sierra Leone orphans is our collective responsibility, therefore the objective of improving the live of these children whose parents are dead should be everybody’s concern in our country. To what extent this prevails in the country is the crucial question we all need to ask ourselves? Does anybody want to become an orphan? No body is willing to be an orphan. This means that the state of being an orphan is completely involuntary: and a consideration of the forces that makes children be orphan will help us be conscious of the need to come together to give support to such a vulnerable group. Both natural and artificial forces are responsible to render children orphans. On the natural plane include the death of child’s parents by old age, diseases, fire, hurricanes, and wild animals. The December 26, 2004 Tsunami that rocked the foundation of Indian Ocean and its shores is typical example of natural forces behind the making of orphans. Very close to us in Sierra Leone, however, such earthquakes may be rare but our own records of death are colossal from the impact of diseases and drowning. Ranked among the least developed countries in the world Sierra Leone has been name for diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis, STD or sexually transmitted disease…….. All of which are potential catalyst in the process of making orphans. Added to these diseases is the Aids pandemic with its uncompromising fatalism. Many parents died because they are either too poor to secure the basic necessities of life or pay for professional medical assistance. What about death by drowning? Can we remember the case of how Sierra Leonean traders died enrooted by boat to and from the neighboring countries? Have fishermen not lost their lives in pursuing their profession? In all these case, however thousands of children in Sierra Leone become orphans due to natural forces.
What hold on the artificial plane also strikes a pessimistic chord. Many orphans have owned their status to the death of their parents by war, road accidents, airplanes crash, witchcraft or mining. Think of the thousands of people killed during the Freetown intervention and in other part of the country. To this end, orphans are our collective responsibility? Alpha Beretay,