Alhaji Alhassan Ziblim Alhassan, a retired local governance practitioner, has urged youth groups across the country to embrace advocacy as a potent tool for promoting accountable governance at all levels. Speaking at a forum for youth groups in Tamale, Alhaji Alhassan emphasized the importance of demanding responsible and accountable leadership through consistent lobbying and engagement with leaders to create opportunities and provide an enabling environment for young people to thrive.
Alhaji Alhassan stressed the need for the strategic development of compelling advocacy messages supported by data and facts to drive demands for development. He underscored the responsibility of young people to contribute to the overall development of the country by being responsible citizens.
The forum, organized by Simba Ghana, a youth empowerment, governance, and peacebuilding NGO, in partnership with the Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) and funded by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, aimed to enhance participants' understanding of governance, accountability, and citizen-local authority dynamics.
Mr. Abdul-Rahaman Abdul-Mumin, Executive Director of Simba Ghana, highlighted the importance of empowering participants through information sharing on social mobilization to enable active participation in community development processes. He expressed concern over declining trends in governance accountability in developing countries, urging youth to advocate for accountable governance to ensure equitable resource distribution for sustainable development.
Echoing these sentiments, Mr Abdul-Hamid Yushawu, Second Deputy Speaker of the Northern Regional Youth Parliament, called for the full implementation of policies and programs related to youth development, emphasizing that the growth of young people in the country hinges on the execution of such policies.
Mrs Abubakari Ayishetu, a Member of the Ghana Federation of Disability Organizations, attributed challenges facing persons living with disabilities (PwDs) in the country to a lack of accountable governance. She urged measures to reverse this trend and commended Simba Ghana and its partners for organizing the forum.
The “Northern Regional Youth Cafe,” part of the “I am Aware Project,” aimed to provide user-friendly information to the public to enhance service delivery at all levels. The forum brought together various youth groups, including persons living with disabilities, from Tamale, Sagnarigu, Karaga, and Gushegu Districts, fostering dialogue and advocacy for accountable governance and inclusive development.