Jigawa Youths And Their Future -By Umar Farouk

The epicenter of youths in societal development is predicated on the fact that youths account for half of the world’s population. And as people with enormous leadership and innovative potentials, accessibility to the appropriate education and livelihood opportunities enables society to harness the assets of young people to foster social and economic development.

Inclusion and the availability of a continuum of services and opportunities fast track the transition of youths into successful adults. The endless sentiment politics of society, deregulation of key sectors of the economy, privatisation of public services, inviolability of market forces, liberation of trade in goods and capital investment, withering of the welfare state, unstructured nature of social welfare programs and routine violations of basic labor rights have significantly altered the structure of our society and affected sectors, people and institutions. 

In societies that have virtually lost its history, soul, memory, and responsibility, the first causalities are usually the youths. Nowhere has the deleterious implications of these developments been felt than on the youths and also indirectly on the future, sustainability and progress ofJigawa as a State, prosperous and peaceful entity.

In a way, the states of Jigawa youths cannot be divorced from the state of society itself and are quick to inculcate personal lessons and examples, view society from the prism of their childhood experiences and espouse the instincts of self-preservation at any cost. Sadly, the inversion of youths responsiveness to advance the cause of common good is evinced by the fact that wantonness or improprieties seem to have replaced compassion, hardwork, diligence, and social responsibility as important modalities mediating youth interfacing with the larger social order.

You can’t deny the fact that, in Jigawa, the youths have been virtually excluded from the State and their Local Governments decision and policy-making, in addition to losing out from the various contraptions and configurations to chart for the future. All these have left the youths psychologically, economically and educationally incapacitated with few options of escaping and debilitating kind of system. May be the stakeholders sees youths as those without basic knowledge of the fundamental moral and political obligations of citizenship. 

In addition, youths misery has been worsened by the decline in economic activities. This factor invariably intensifies the plight of the youths as they wander around with their curriculum vitaes seeking opportunities that may abound for a livelihood. Due to recession, a lot of adults (including youths) have been sacked from work, thus creating no opportunities for the unemployed. Most companies (especially banks) lay off their employees because they can no longer afford their pay.

What is happening to youths today has dire implications for the future of Jigawa as a State. Inexplicably, policymakers seem unperturbed that Jigawa has the largest amount of out of school children and a humongous level of youth unemployment which combined with poverty, hopelessness and despair fuels the astronomical increase in youth crimes nationally. Any discourse about the future of Jigawa state must commence with the youths, because the youths are not only the leaders of tomorrow, but also because any nation can only be as strong, active and versatile if the youth are truly encourage.

There are no doubt, youths denote a proclivity for progress, development and innovation. Appreciable human development indices are ultimately linked with the wellbeing of youths and the gradual cultivation of responsive and responsible citizenship. In other words, youths require a level of support, nurturing and education in order to optimally hit the required heights. 

Youths require a surfeit of decent education, health, nutritional, housing and employment opportunities and other socio-economic and political conditions that can enable them have respectable standard and quality of life. 

But to be fair, the deteriorating state of the youths today in Jigawa poses a very daunting challenge for stakeholders and patriotic people who truly have the progress and growth of the State at heart. This is a challenge that is urgent and necessary and should be at the forefront of our lives and all aspects of policy and decision making at all arms, tiers and levels of government.

A vital means of rescuing the rapidly deteriorating intellectual and moral visions regarding young people is to imagine vital policies, values, opportunities and social relations that can invoke adult responsibility and reinforce the ethical imperative to provide youths with the much needed economic, social and educational conditions that will make their lives livable and their future sustainable.

So Help Us God!

Umar writes from Jigawa, and he can reached via +2347032843368, daddyjahun@gmai.com