Youth Empowerment and its Benefits

Almost three quarters of the world’s population is comprised of youths and a greater number of these youths who are in the working-age population are unemployed. If these youths are empowered they could be part of the social capital and bring change to their designated communities. It is somehow impossible for them to market themselves and they need deliberate interventions for them to bring change to our societies.

There is need to facilitate the process of equipping the youths with entrepreneurial skills or promotion of youth cooperative and youth led savings and credit organizations. Furthermore, the youths could also be empowered through the strengthening of youth umbrella organizations as well as their networks at national level and integrate them with regional or global youth networks.

Societies can benefit in many ways if the youths are empowered. Another innovative way could be through the introduction of youth job fairs and exhibitions bringing all prospective employers from both the public and the private sector. If there could be such sessions whereby officials from the aforementioned sectors could talk to the youths linking training as well as skills development with jobs and in such a way youth dependency on government could be reduced. This could help to enhance social-economic development since the youth will have opportunities to put their natural endowments into creative and productive channels.

Empowering the youth economically is very advantageous  and helpful in reducing youth delinquency in societies as the youth will have something to do instead of just having excessive free time. This is a cheaper way to deal with crimes that are committed by the youths than opening a lot of reformatory centre’s. On top of that, societies will also deal with other social ills like drug abuse and political violence because politicians use unemployed youths to advance their political agendas. There’s need for increased communication with young men and women in families giving them enough space where the youths are valued, respected, encouraged and supported in their efforts to develop their personal capacities.

Youth empowerment translates itself into the well being of the next generation. It is the duty of all capable adults in the society to ensure that the youths are nurtured in a way that will make them productive to their various communities.