1. Youth Participation in Governance, A Tool for Nation-building; Case Study of Ikorodu
Neighborhood Parliament, Nigeria
Toyosi Oyebanji
Background
This presentation examines the problems of youth participation
in governance in Nigeria and a grass root approach towards
engaging youth for positive and active participation through
creation of inclusive spaces such as the neighborhood youth
parliament.
The non-participation of the young people in Nigeria cuts
across other vital sectors such as the civil service and the
educational sector. Lack of participation has a negative effect
not only on the youth but especially on the economy as an
emerging nation. It buttresses the fact that a system with all
strategic positions in the hands of the few aged would be static,
highly traditional and not 21st century compliant. There should
be more emphasis on young people as the main natural
resource of Nigeria and not oil, as oil has a lifeline while young
people if socially conscious will remain the backbone of the
society.
Research Questions
• How participatory are young people in issues of
governance?
• If not, what needs to be done to re-ignite the interest of
young people in governance?
• If yes? How deeply involved are they?
• Are there enabling systems and platforms to promote
effective participation of young people in governance
Hypothesis
A major hindrance to youth participation in governance are
cultural practices, a few which are:
• The belief that young people lack the right amount of
experience and maturity to take responsibility is inherent in
the culture of the community.
• Female marginalisation
• The sole decision making body even on youth related
matters are elders.
• No clear cut definition in development plans/initiatives for
positive inclusion of young people.
Methodology
• The major methodology for this work were surveys through
administering of questionnaires and informal interviews to
one hundred and sixty four respondents across wards in
the Local government area.
• Survey administered across different age groups of 18-21,
22- 25, 26-30 and 30 above and a balanced gender.
• Over 70% of the population of the town is under the age of
35, reflecting a true picture of Lagos state which has the
highest number of youths in Nigeria.
• VSO Nigeria conducted surveys through its team of young
International Citizen Service (ICS) Volunteers in Ikorodu
Results
At the end of the survey, challenges facing youths from
becoming actively involved in governance in Ikorodu were
identified as:
• Exclusion from decision making and key involvement in
socio-economic activities
• Lack of access to information on government programmes
and policies
• High youth unemployment
• Under-representation of youth in government
• Lack of access to social amenities and services
• Increasing apathy among young people about governance
and political activity
• Poor government accountability at local government level
• Drug Abuse
Future Work
• Future work would be on compilation of relevant data on
the Nigerian Youth issues, for easy accessibility to the
public.
• Skills Manual for the rural community youth
spaces/platforms
• Simplification of youth policies for easy comprehension by
all.
Bibliography
Adeyinka, Bayo. 2015. “Angry letter to the Nigerian Youth.” 25 May.
http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/05/angry-letter-to-the-nigerian-youth/
Anasi, Stella. 2010. “Curbing Youth Restiveness in Nigeria: The Role of Information
and Libraries,1-6.
A, Ozohu Suleiman. 2006. “The Nigerian youth in contemporary political development:
Relevance,challenges, and role expectation.”
National Bureau of Statistics. 2012. National Youth Baseline Survey. Survey Report,
Abuja: National Bureau of Statistics.
N, Onyekpe. 2007. “Managing youth at election. .” The Constitution: A Journal of
Constitutional Development 7 (1) 76-87.
Nigeria, Federal Republic of. 2009. “Second National Youth Policy Document.”
Report, Abuja.
Charts and Figures
Conclusion
Combating the challenges of the non-participation of youth in
governance should be a major task for policy makers, private
sectors and government alike. There is need:
• For a total restructuring of the Ministry of Youth
Development to promote social inclusion
• To Increase the Education Budget
• To create a platform for young people to be involved; to
form a stronger voice to demand accountability
• To equip young people with skills, self esteem and self
worth orientation, for positive engagement.
All these would create socially conscious youth actively
involved in decision making