| From: |
Esther Agbarakwe [ profile ] |
| Subject: |
Re: [csd17Yconsult] Week 1 Questions
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| Sent: |
Apr 24th, 2009 - 06:20:42 |
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| |
Hi, I am Esther Agbarakwe, Earth Charter Youth Initiative,
Nigeria. I work in the North central Nigeria,
Nigeria
The rise in food prices that
accentuated globally during the first quarter of 2008, registered it impact on
Nigeria by April/May, resulting in usual panicky measures by government.
Perhaps the most controversial of the response measures was the initial
announcement by the federal government to approve N80 billion for the
importation of rice. The Law makers in the National Assembly kicked against
Federal Government Council of May 7 2008 to “Waive import duties on rice”. The
government also approved “The utilization of funds accruing to the Development
of Natural Resources Account (which had a balance of N80.28 billion) between
that point and 2011 to boost domestic production of food crops and development
of agro-allied industries” (leadership, May 8,2008:p.2) There was no youth involvement in the decision making process!
Food security, livelihood and poverty
in rural communities of Northern Nigeria are determined by agricultural
production of the individuals and communities. Rainfall and temperature rates
dictate the amount of agriculture production, annually, Agriculture everywhere
in the country being independent on rainfall have been adversely impacted by
increased in the variability in timing and amount of rainfall.
Eleven out of the 19 Northern State
are very prone to desertification and drought. “The situation has assumed such
magnitude that the minimum vegetation cover over Kastina, Sokoto, zamfara,
kebbi, Kano, Jigawa, Bauchi, Yobe, Maiduguri, Taraba, and Adamawa States have
already fallen below 10% as against the ideal requirement of 25% ecological
support for life”(Weekly Trust, December 27,2004) Therefore the
encroaching desert has affected the ecology of the North West and North
east regions in terms of availability of land for food and cash crops
production and even availability of greener pastures for animal grazing. youths in Nigeria have been great affected
by Agriculture, land ,drought and by the effect of desertification such as unemplyoment, poverty and migration.
Young people in Nigeria constitute an important and significant
part of the population, yet, it is not reflected in their level of
involvement and inclusion in decision-making processes and public debates. As
Nigeria government is focusing on responding to the special needs and opportunities
of young people, it is vital that young people are included in shaping policies
and services aimed to serve them.
Several government led-initiatives appear to show commitment to
addressing youth needs, but the majorities are largely unresponsive to the
actual needs and aspiration of youths especially in sustainable development
Young people’s choice of activities for coping with
vulnerability and exclusion in line with sustainability are determined and
shaped by factors such as the social network they are exposed to.
The Challenges of youth in Nigeria are poor governance,
disrupted education and socio-economic deprivation.
The key needs of youth in Nigeria are access to quality
education, employment and socio-economic opportunities, as well as participation
in the formal processes of decision-making (beyond voting during elections and
joining the youth wings of political parties.)
If this continues, what do out think will happen in few years?
Best Regards.
Esther Agbarakwe
Project Manager Earth Charter Youth Special Project--Nigeria
Skype:donestyc
yahoo:donestyc
About me: Please visit www.profiles.takingitglobal. org/estyc www. esthertransformationalleadersh ip.blogspot.com
http://ecyg.wikispaces.com/ nigeria_Calabar
".The Future belongs to those who prepare for it today......"
--- On Fri, 4/24/09, Luis Davila-Ortega wrote:
From: Luis Davila-Ortega
Subject: Re: [csd17Yconsult] Week 1 Questions
To: "Esther Agbarakwe"
Date: Friday, April 24, 2009, 8:05 AM
Hi all,
My name is Luis Davila and I am from Venezuela but currently live/work
in New York City. In my day job I am the Enhancing the Field Director
to the Environmental Grantmakers Association, a network of 210 funders
supporting environmental work. I am also a member of the
TakingITGlobal board of advisors.
In Venezuela, youth has been affected directly by issues of land and
agriculture. Since we became and oil producing country in the 1920s, a
rapid urbanization has taken place displacing significant chunks of
the population to the North/Coastal areas of the country. These areas
provide employment opportunities in the oil industry. This has left us
with a stagnant agricultural industry and abandoned rural sector. I
think there are great opportunities for sustainable agricultural
practices, but investing in such areas in an oil-producing country has
been extremely hard.
Given our dependence in oil, we have become a hugely consumerist
society. This has not helped at all as we address issues of land use,
especially as it relates to waste management processes and recycling
practices. There are very limited opportunities for recycling! Young
people organize clean-up activities, but there is not a coordinated
recycling program that helps reduce waste.
In terms of direct youth participation, the country has become
extremely polarized between those supporting the current Chavez
government and those opposing it. This makes it really hard to have
constructive dialogue on ways to move forward with sustainable
practices, especially around agriculture.
I hope this helps. Look forward to the other responses. Let me know if
you have any questions.
Cheers,
Luis
On Mon, Apr 20, 2009 at 3:35 AM, Bernise Ang wrote:
> Replies to this message will be sent to the group by default.
> The sender of this message can be contacted at: bernise (at) syinc.org
>
> Hi everyone!
>
> As mentioned in the welcome note over the weekend, here are the questions
> for Week 1.
>
> As an overall suggestion, please be as concrete as possible in the
> information you share with us! Try to avoid writing opinions or sentiments
> alone, but focus on examples and case studies. This will allow your
> information to be more useful for the drafting process of the Youth Caucus.
>
> Once again, remember to introduce yourself - name, country, organisation,
> designation - when you post your responses.
>
> Happy posting!
> Bernise
>
>
> === WEEK 1 QUESTIONS ===
>
> i) Please tell us how youth have been affected in your country in relation
> to any or all of the following issues:
>
> - Agriculture
> - Drought & desertification
> - Land
> - Rural development
>
> Please use concrete data or specific examples as much as possible.
>
>
>
> ii) Have you or do you know of young people who have been involved in a
> sustainable development strategy/plan in your country? If yes, how? (Please
> share information about specific case studies or projects if possible. Links
> would be fantastic)
>
>
>
> iii) It is common for legislators and authorities to view young people only
> as beneficiaries when it comes to sustainable development work, rather than
> as any other kind of stakeholder. Do you really think that involving young
> people in sustainable development makes a difference? If so, what is the
> difference? Please be specific and use examples/case studies as much as
> possible.
>
> -------------------------------------------
>
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