INITIATE YOUTH-MENTORING PROGRAMMES (PAGE 51, JAN 24, 2011)

THE Mamfehene, Osabarima Ansah Sasraku, has advocated the development of sustainable youth-oriented mentoring programmes that will unearth the potential of the youth in the country.
That, he said, would motivate young people to appreciate their God-given talents and potentials to grow up to become more useful to themselves and society.
“Our most precious natural resources are not found in our gold, diamonds, cocoa, timber and manganese that our economy has depended on for many years but in our ability to unearth the talents of our children into indispensable resources for our progress,” he stated.
Speaking at the annual Ohum Festival of the chiefs and people of Mamfe in the Akuapem North District in the Eastern Region last Saturday, Osabarima Sasraku stated that “hidden in the hearts and minds of our children are the hopes, dreams and aspirations of our towns, regions, nation and the world as a whole”.
The event, which was held on the theme, “Mentoring as a means of transferring knowledge to the youth”, attracted a large gathering of people from all walks of life, including the outgoing Eastern Regional Minister, Mr Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo; the Member of Parliament for Akropong, Mr William Ofori Boafo, and the District Chief Executive for Akuapem North, Mr George Opare Addo.
Dwelling on how the country could nurture the youth into responsible adult citizens, the Mamfehene, who is also the Kyidomhene of the Akuapem Traditional Area, said for many years the country had placed little attention on the institution of youth-oriented programmes and investments to empower the youth.
“Much of our attention has been devoted to the exploitation of the country’s natural resources which are not our most precious natural resources for our development aspirations,” he stated.
“How do we, as a nation, provide guidance and the support needed so that the youth do not only receive formal education provided by our educational system but also get help to develop their self-esteem and become emotionally and spiritually mature?” he asked.
As a way of providing mentoring programmes for young people of Mamfe and its environs, Osabarima Sasraku called on the chiefs and people of the area to support the initiation of youth mentoring programmes to empower the people.
For his part, Mr Ofosu-Ampofo noted that though the youth constituted the largest segment of the population, they were the most affected by unemployment, while their potential had often been misdirected into wrong actions such as indiscipline, hooliganism, alcoholism, drug abuse and other social vices.
To address that, he said since education was now considered a right and not a privilege, the government would ensure that quality education was accessible to all children.