EAC OFFICIAL CALLS FOR STRONG INVESTMENT IN YOUTH

                                                         EAST AFRICAN COMMUNITY

PRESS RELEASE

   

East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania: The EAC Deputy Secretary General in charge of Political Federation Mr. Charles Njoroge has called for the region to invest in youth education, empowerment and effective civil participation.

Mr. Charles  Njoroge made his remarks at the closing session of the four-day conference of the Tanzania Model United Nations (TMUN), an authentic simulation of the UN General Assembly hosted by East African Community Headquarters in Arusha ,Tanzania.

He said in this era of regional integration and rapid globalization; the need to take proactive measures that harness the potential and competitiveness of our young people to ensure they fit in the global economy is even more critical than we care to imagine.

The EAC Deputy Secretary informed  the youth that  in the Community, Article 120 (c) of the EAC Treaty provides for adoption of common approach when dealing with the youth and calls for their involvement in the integration process through education, training and mainstreaming of youth issues into the EAC policies, projects and programs.

Mr. Charles Njoroge noted that the EAC–Youth Ambassador’s Platform was among many other programs where the youth in East Africa had an opportunity to participate in the regional consultation processes and indeed developed an EAC position paper on “Constitutionalism and Rule of Law” that was submitted to the African Union.  

“I would like to encourage the youth to take this opportunity to engage in the integration process through our programs and nurture the East African identity among yourselves’’

The EAC official reiterated that, EAC integration process was people centered and the main beneficiaries of the Community were the East African citizens. “Let us all ensure that aspects of sustainable development remain integral to our collective efforts to attain it”, affirmed Mr. Njoroge.

The TMUN is the forum that gives a good exam­ple of how the voices of youth can be garnered for incorporation into national dialogues, consultations and it opens doors for youth to brainstorm fresh ideas which will lead to the adoption of clear and focused goals with the World Youth want for the post 2015.

The  7 to 10 April 2014 Tanzania Model United Nations conference under the theme “Young People on Post 2015 Agenda: Time for Collective Action” brought together more than  200 youth participants from East African region and other countries to discuss on major issues evolving around the globe.