ActionAid holds governance and leadership training for youth

Twenty-three young persons from five African countries have received training in governance and leadership under the ActionAid Global Platform Ghana initiative in Tamale.

They were selected from Ghana, Benin, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria.

Dubbed: “Youth Participation in Governance 2017,” the training built the capacities of the participants to enable them to get involved in the decision making processes in their communities and contribute to development.

The Global Platform Ghana, is a leadership training hub of ActionAid, a leading non-governmental organisation headquartered in Denmark.

Funded by the Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA), the Youth Participation in Governance training was tailored to enhance the trainees' understanding of governance, democracy, accountability, participation, leadership and power with a focus on youth throughout the modules.

The facilitator of the training, Solomon Darko Kyeremah, commended the trainees for their participation and implored them to take advantage of the opportunity to build their self-confidence and capacities.

Mr. Darko Kyeremah hailed the project saying it will motivate the participants to contest for leadership positions in their communities, giving them the chance to contribute to governance.

“We have had similar trainings some time ago, and they have been very inspiring. Some of our participants contested leadership seats in their communities,” he said.

He said there would be a follow up campaign program, which will give the trainees the chance to put what they have studied into practice.

He said the Platform had a youth activism group dubbed "activista" which served as a mouth piece for Ghanaian youth to articulate their opinions on governmental and developmental issues.

The ActionAid Global Platform Ghana is poised to combat gender disparity and create more space for women to get involved in decision making, the Vice Co-ordinator for activista Ghana, Daniel Nii Ankrah, has said.

The activista has organised women empowerment programmes for young women in the country, Mr Ankrah added.

Last year, the group organised a peace campaign to sensitise Ghanaians on peaceful elections ahead of the December polls.