The Youth Initiative for Advocacy, Growth and Advancement (YIAGA) has stressed that involving the youths in political, economic and social issues is a precondition for sustaining peace as their exclusion can be a risk factor for violence and violent forms of conflict.

In a statement issued last Saturday, the group observed that since the adoption of Security Council Resolution 2250 in 2015, there has been growing recognition that as agents of change, young people are critical actors in conflict prevention and sustaining peace.

It noted that the International Youth Day 2017 is dedicated to celebrating young people’s contributions to conflict prevention and transformation as well as inclusion, social justice, and sustainable peace.

“Young people’s inclusion in the peace and security agenda and in society more broadly, is key to building and sustaining peace. The process of social inclusion for youth, including participation in decision-making as well as access to quality education, health care, economic opportunities and basic services promotes their role as active contributors to society and affords young people with opportunities to reach their potentials and achieve their goals.

“Inclusion is particularly important for peace, in two ways: first, and most obviously, exclusion leads to grievance that can all too easily turn into or breed violence. Second, societies contain within them the seeds of violent conflict because they enshrine habits of ‘structural violence’ that harm those who are excluded, and thus implicitly condone the idea that some members of society are allowed to do harm to others. In addition, beyond creating an opportunity for participation, inclusion builds a sense of responsibility and ownership amongst young people.

“Young people’s leadership and roles in preventing and resolving conflict, violence and extremism are rich resources essential to achieving sustainable peace and development. Young people are agents of change, and their contributions should be actively supported, solicited and regarded as essential to building peaceful communities and supporting democratic governance and transition.

“In celebrating the International Youth Day, the Youth Initiative for Advocacy, Growth and Advancement (YIAGA) recognises that in order for Nigeria to succeed in achieving the sustainable peace, governments must seek out an active and substantive engagement of young women and men from diverse backgrounds in inclusive decision making and participation in democracy as a means of building peace.”

The group also commended the passage of the constitutional amendments by the National Assembly in Nigeria to reduce the age for contesting elections as a response to the call for youth-inclusive governance in a country where nearly 70% of its population is young is inevitable.

“Today, YIAGA joins her voice to the demands of young people in Nigeria for a conscious effort targeted at increasing commitment and investment in youth in line with the African Union 2017 Theme: Harnessing Demographic Dividends through Investment in Youth. Such efforts are also targeted at increasing youth participation and partnerships in peace-building and intercultural understanding amongst the young people through programs promoting intercultural dialogues and intergenerational exchange.

“We once again join youths in Nigeria, Africa and the rest of the world in celebrating International Youth Day 2017 and re-echo our call to all young people to take the lead in building peace, promoting inclusion and mainstreaming youth participation for sustainable development.”