TIGed

Switch headers Switch to TIGweb.org

Are you an TIG Member?
Click here to switch to TIGweb.org

HomeHomeExpress YourselfPanoramaYouth Implementing MDGs in Senegal: Dream or Reality?
Panorama
a TakingITGlobal online publication
Search



(Advanced Search)

Panorama Home
Issue Archive
Current Issue
Next Issue
Featured Writer
TIG Magazine
Writings
Opinion
Interview
Short Story
Poetry
Experiences
My Content
Edit
Submit
Guidelines
Youth Implementing MDGs in Senegal: Dream or Reality? Printable Version PRINTABLE VERSION
by Latif M'bengue, Senegal Mar 11, 2005
Poverty   Opinions

  

Youth Implementing MDGs in Senegal: Dream or Reality? Senegalese Youth and MDG as a thematic

At first sight, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) might mean nothing to the majority of Senegalese youth. 2/3 of the youth I have questioned, answered that they have no idea about it, or they have a vague knowledge of the MDGs - and none of them know about the Millennium Campaign. Myself, I have to confess that I did not know about the Millennium Campaign until recently - though I already knew about the MDGs.

This may seem as if the MDGs are a foreign concept, which has no relevance in the daily life of youth here. It is only in April 2004, meaning four years after the Declaration was signed and two years after the Millennium Campaign was set up that the youth in Senegal started to be sensitized about the MDGs. It was on the occasion of the Pan-African Youth Leadership Conference organized here in Senegal by UNDP and the Global Peace Initiative of Women. That meeting, presided by President Wade, was the first attempt to get Senegalese youth involved in the implementation of the MDGs. The National MDG Campaign headquartered at the Directorate of Youth Life under the supervision of the Youth Ministry, is a direct outgrowth of the Pan-African Youth Leadership Conference. Therefore, seen from that point of view, it appears that youth in Senegal have just started learning about the MDGs.

But this doesn’t mean that they haven’t been contributing to the MDGs. On the contrary, youth in Senegal have been at the forefront of development and poverty reduction struggle for years.

Senegalese Youth and the MDGs as a Development Challenge

If we consider the MDGs as a set of development challenges and not as a thematic or an umbrella of development concepts, we realize that Senegalese youth are already contributing to their achievement. From an empirical perspective, I can say that Senegalese youth associations are already tackling some of the key issues raised by the Millennium Declaration. I will just take the examples of goals 1, 6 and 8 to illustrate this point.

Youth and Goal 1

In the rural areas, young people are the main work force that is mobilized to produce food and to perform all the fieldwork that is necessary to maintain decent living for the community. Therefore, if youth are strengthened and supported, they can play a major role in the achievement of food security and the eradication of hunger.


Youth and Goal 6

If we take the case of Goal 6, which relates to HIV/AIDS and other diseases, youth associations had been addressing it well before the Millennium Declaration was signed. And today if Senegal has one of the lowest prevalence rates in Sub-Saharan Africa, one can say that young people have contributed to it. Youth have been involved in HIV/AIDS education, HIV testing and blood donation campaigns, and they actively supported HIV/AIDS patients. Medical student associations in particular have been playing a key role. Besides, during what we call rainy season here, when people both in rural and urban areas are badly hit by malaria and other tropical diseases, student and youth associations sacrifice their school vacation and engage into social activities that provide valuable assistance to the population.

Youth and Goal 8

Various youth networks are already active in the field of youth empowerment and youth employment. A great deal of efforts is being made by youth themselves to ensure that their peers have the leadership skills and necessary competences to enter the job market. These networks, however, should be empowered as they often operate under difficult conditions without any administrative support from both government and society. There is also a need to coordinate the efforts of the various youth groups.

I believe that if youth establish a partnership with Government, Civil Society and the Private Sector, they can be strong enough to reach full employment and therefore contribute to the realization of Goal 8 of the Millennium Declaration.





 1     


Tags

You must be logged in to add tags.

Writer Profile
Latif M'bengue


This user has not written anything in his panorama profile yet.
Comments


Okay?!
Antony Felix O. O. Simbowo | May 4th, 2005
MDGs are a good idea especially for the developing world but watch out lest you wait in vain for other people to help develop your country for you. they are not enough your personal input in development however little such as volunteering would be invaluable to the down trodden in Senegal. The journey starts with you...



good
elizabeth kibalama | Feb 14th, 2006
its good u are working already. Having expert knowledge on development can u advive me on how to get an ngo to help me get experience in development. i have a degree but little working background. Despite my lack of french, is there a possibility of working with you and ur organization to learn under you and get some working development? any advice is welcome and needed. elizabeth



Kids Can Make A Difference (KIDS) of hunger and poverty and how they as individuals can take action.
neil jay wollman | Sep 6th, 2009
Kids Can Make A Difference (KIDS) is an innovative educational program for middle school and high school students. It helps them understand the root causes of hunger and poverty and how they as individuals can take action. KIDS has three major components: ►Teachers’ Guide: Finding Solutions To Hunger: Kids Can Make A Difference has provided over 5,000 classrooms, religious schools, after school programs and homeschoolers with tools to help young people to understand the causes of poverty and become informed and effective citizens, realizing their own capacity to change the world. Students learn about the pain of hunger; the importance of food; the inequality of its distribution; and the links between poverty, hunger, joblessness, and homelessness. They are then given the skills to take what they have learned into their communities. ►Website: The KIDS web site is rated one of the top 20 websites for educators by Educational World. The site provides news, a hunger quiz, hunger facts, suggested books, back issues of the newsletter, the table of contents, sample lessons, program notes from the teacher guide; and ►Newsletter: The three yearly issues highlight current hunger issues, showcase student initiatives, and feature teachers' experiences teaching the KIDS program and students' experiences making a difference in their community and world. Contact KIDS at: Larry Levine, Co-Founder KIDS, 1 Borodell Avenue Mystic, CT 06355 (860) 245-3620; (860) 245-3651 FAX kids@kidscanmakeadifference.org; www.kidscanmakeadifference.org KIDS is a project of WHY (World Hunger Year), a leading advocate for community based solutions to hunger and poverty.

You must be a TakingITGlobal member to post a comment. Sign up for free or login.