Youth, one of the idle great resources of our country
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By Jok WaMonychok, Abyei, South Sudan
Tuesday, February 25, 2020 (PW) — As every nation in the modern era of resources exploitation says nothing about the youth as the cornerstone of nation-building, we seem to join others who have already empowered their youth in overlooking the youth and the critical role they play in every aspect of nation building. There are some countries on earth where youth are employed as earlier as they turn eighteen. These are countries with mature and stable economies which address unemployment and other economic problems by their own.
As a result, in those countries, economic empowerment of youth does not come as an affirmative action or service provision but as a compulsory force driven by invisible hand principle. Adam Smith, the great capitalist economist introduced invisible hand principle in The Theory of Moral Principle arguing that, no one in the market has the intention or interest in promoting economic growth for the wellbeing of the society. As one works to fulfil their interests, they unintendedly serve the interest of the society through his self-interest to sustain the economy.
However, countries like South Sudan have youth that are idle resources and no one seems to care. Youth are important when they are mobilized to attack a neighboring community for a political gain. The definition of youth differs from one country to another and from one region to another. The youth according to East Africa Community (EAC) is a person between the age of 18 and 35. Other definitions vary from 18 to 45.
Youth in other words means someone at the most active and productive age and summarily young. Therefore, this is the time in life where one should have a decent job that pays well in order to save for the inactive periods later in life. Time beyond 45 years is characterized by herald of less appetite and energy for work, be it manual or mental. The muscles and brain do not longer manage ache associated with excessive work. That is why it’s imperative to work hard and save some good amount of money in order to be able to settle down well during retirement by starting a business.
In case one is unemployed, they should engage in income generating activities or self-employment. This is more effective than being employed because high profit is generated, which doubles salaries and wages earned by the employed but the obstacle is the capital for starting the business. Economic instability brought about by corruption, insecurity, poor infrastructure, and low capacity is a big challenge. The small scale businesses do not withstand the waves of economic crises that face them. This poses a huge threat to those small scale business owners who cannot have reserve in place to absorb the waves of crises during economic slowdown. my best friends mom pawg porn wears a short skirt
Nevertheless, the biggest challenge facing the youth is lack of proper judgment to find ways out of these abysses. Thus, in order to achieve economic independence, the youth must equip themselves or be equipped with entrepreneurial skills capable of liberating them from economic bondage. There is much to worry about when a youth who is a graduate and over thirty still depends on the support provided by a parent, relative or friend.
In our country, it is not because youth are lazy or can’t be able to manage businesses, I always say. We are not trusted by everyone including relatives and fellow youth. When youth express their confidence by making tough decisions, others think they are crazy and sometimes feel jealous and try to discourage them because they are challenged by other youth doing things they feared to attempt. What they don’t know is that all things are possible.
The other scenario putting the youth into miserable position is the influence exerted by the politicians or anyone with money and sort to use it for bad intentions. The fact surrounding this still revolves around the economic situation in which youth cannot win the help of anyone unless they do what they are asked to do regardless of whether it’s good or bad.
The best example is when a jobless youth is incited to go public online in abusing a political opponent of the other politician who promises him a job or pays him petty cash. This is the worst form of declining social values. In every society of South Sudan, respect for elders, women, and of course everyone makes the most important part of the culture. The current twist in cultural values is unprecedented and as we shake our heads in dismay and hopelessness over our departing culture, less attention is paid to the fact that youth are unemployed and this leave them highly vulnerable to any form of exploitation.
Another problem is politics taking every youth away from foundational activities. I am not talking about politics among themselves, but that one immaturely exercised with elders. This can be rightfully blamed on lack of something to do as well. There is no way anyone who has something to do can be seated in one place for more than eight hours discussing politics after paying for a cup of tea. This negatively affects tea lady who pays the rent for the place and other payments for relevant expenses.
The above mentioned points out of many are faced by youth. To reduce them or bring them to complete end, the government, development agencies, and the youth alike must device some solutions. The first is provision of training to the youth. This is through vocational training in masonry, welding, plumbing, electricity, tailoring and so forth. This is the most effective method of getting the best out of the youth who are idle. As a result, the government would have solved the issues of unemployment, unproductivity, balance of payment problems, unnecessary political activities and many crimes related to idleness.
Second, the development agencies should give short courses on capacity building aimed at opening and empowering the youth to mobilize and manage resources which lead to starting a business. There should be an award designed to recognize those youth with entrepreneurial skills and have made some achievements. This is an effective strategy of career development that can take care of them in a dynamic environment of innovation and creativity.
Third, youth as well as other social groups must summon a spirit of trust, love, respect, and hard work. For instance, those politicians, businessmen and youth who have accumulated resources should create businesses and employ those jobless youth. On the other hand, the youth should be trustworthy and capable enough to be entrusted with money and businesses. In addition, they should confidently ask for opportunities and achieve results in order to pave ways for other youth. “Ask and you will be given.”
The writer is a graduand of Economics at Catholic University of South Sudan. He can be reached at jokwamonychok@gmail.com or +211927508956
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