Youth initiative “our city” launched by STAR Ghana Foundation

The Star-Ghana Foundation has launched a new development initiative called Our City in Koforidua with the aim of promoting active citizenship and driving forward a development agenda that leaves no one behind.

The initiative, also called Action for Youth Development (AfYD) project and funded by BOTNAR Foundation, seeks to encourage the active participation of citizens in the development of their communities and cities.

Speaking during the launch, Mrs. Eunice R. Agbenadzi, Head of Programmes, Star Ghana Foundation, explained that the project would be inclusive, and minimize disparities in access to social services for various groups of young people.
She said the project also prioritized the inclusion of marginalized groups, such as women, youth, and people with disabilities, in the development process.

“Overall, this project will help to make sure that young people are included in development processes and reap its benefits,” she added, “To guarantee that development programming is more meaningful for young people and provides access to social services, including education, decent job, and health and wellbeing.”

She said the initiative is aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and seeks to contribute to the achievement of these goals through community-driven development.

Additionally, it will focus on targeted areas for development in Koforidua, including infrastructure, education, health, and economic development as well as promote sustainable development by empowering local communities and stakeholders to take ownership of development projects and drive them forward.

The “Our City” initiative is a collaborative effort that involves key stakeholders, including civil society organizations, government agencies, and private sector actors. It further seeks to promote multi-stakeholder partnerships and engagement to ensure that development efforts are aligned with the needs and priorities of the local community.

Mr. Edward Abazing, the Municipal Coordinating Director for New Juaben South, said there were a lot of young people, and that the municipal assembly placed a lot of emphasis on having young people to participate in their initiatives, saying, that young people are key stakeholders in planning and other engagements.

“When we invite people for engagement, what we find most frequently is that women and people over the age of the youth actively participate,” he said, and expressed the assembly’s commitment to supporting the efforts to enhance development in the area.

He said the initiative was a promising step towards promoting sustainable and inclusive development in Koforidua and served as a model for other cities in Ghana to follow.

Mrs Mariam Mansah Mina, Eastern Regional Director of National Youth Authority, said the youth today were the nation’s assets and required help, adding, “but government cannot provide it alone due to resource constraints.”

She commended Star Ghana Foundation for bringing out the initiative and urged the Assembly to seek NYA collaboration to implement programmes to advance youth development.