ECOWAS Youth and Sport Devt workshop opens in Accra

Economic Community of West African States Youth and Sport Development Centre (YSDC/ECOWAS) is organising a three-day information and sensitization workshop on ECOWAS Youth and sports development in Accra.
The event, which seeks to make sports a key aspect of the socio-economic life of ECOWAS citizens, engine of human development, promote peaceful coexistence and regional integration, was organized on the theme: “Role of ECOWAS in Youth Development”.
Mr. Sunday Ugoh, Director of Communication ECOWAS told Ghana News Agency that the YSDC/ECOWAS mission, a specialised agency of the ECOWAS, was tasked to initiate, develop, coordinate, monitor and implement youth and sports development programmes within the West African Sub-region.
He said “It is also a permanent institutional framework within the community through which youth and sporting activities can be developed and promoted in order to ensure youth commitment in sports”.
Mr. Ugoh said the youth need to be encourage to play active role in the initiative, entrepreneurship and creativity of ECOWAS.
He said the programme was also to find specific solutions to gender discrimination within the community.
Mr. Ugoh said that, “it is also to establish partnership and cooperation with similar organisations in ECOWAS member states, and at the regional and international levels.
“It is to strengthen cooperation in the area of youth and sports through the exchange of best practices training and the development of innovative actions within the community level”.
Mr. Ugoh, said the second ECOWAS games has already started in Accra from 16th to 22 June and recalled that the maiden edition took place in September last year in Abuja, Nigeria.
Mr. Francis Chuks Njoaguani, Director of YSDC/ECOWAS, said it was important for the ECOWAS to make recommendations for improving the living conditions of the youth.
He said that, “there is need to translate ECOWAS youth policies into action of the ECOWAS vision in 2020,” to help to meet the concern and demands of young people who intend to make their voice heard and take position in respect of pertinent issue.
Mr. Njoaguani said that by the end of the workshop, there would be foster interactions among the youth and their leaders.**