Staff Reporter
EENHANA, July 14 – The youth of the Ohangwena region attended the constituency youth forum under the theme ‘’Ohangwena beyond me boot camp youth retreat’’ at Eenhana town today.
The forum was aimed at addressing numerous problems faced by the youth in the region including the high unemployment rate, and HIV-AIDS and also to sensitize them on sexual reproductive health as well as mental health.
Speaking at the forum deputy minister of sport, youth and national services Emma Kantema-Gaomas said the youth need to be engaged as they are the majority of the population and the future leaders of this country.
‘’instead of us going to the youth sitting and listening to questions I thought it’s very important that we rather build capacity, impact knowledge and empower you so that you can make changes in the societies you live, the constituency, the region and the country at large,’’ she said.
She further said that the focus was on the second pillar that speaks to youth health and well-being and promotes youth-friendly information, education and services to achieve a significant improvement in their wellbeing and health.
The governor of the Ohangwena region Walde Ndevashiva said the national youth policy seeks to address challenges that undermine youth development in Namibia with the goal of ensuring that young Namibians can assume their rightful place and build a united, inclusive and prosperous Namibian house.
“We should take it upon ourselves to ensure that we all are familiar with the policy document and to make our parents also understand what the document entails as Namibian youth’’ he said.
He further encouraged the youth attending the forum to make use of the opportunity and gain knowledge that will assist them in making informed decisions when it comes to matters of their health and wellbeing.
The forum which took the whole day concluded with a networking braai.
