“Empowering young people means giving them the opportunities to develop their skills and knowledge. These will go a long way in ensuring that they become responsible people in the country, so that they can in turn contribute their quota towards nation building,” he said.
The Ghana NSS boss is currently in the country at the invitation of the BCC Mayor who is currently championing the country’s first Youth Volunteerism Scheme which aimed at providing skills training for over 500 Gambian youths. Through the initiative, selected youths will have the opportunity to learn various skills within and outside the country on tailoring, hairdressing, and agriculture among other skills.
Assibey Antwi, the former Mayor of Kumasi which is the second-largest city in Ghana, urged Gambians to support the development initiative of Mayor Rohey Lowe, adding: “I can tell you that this youth voluntarism scheme will be a game-changer in the country. These are the kind of initiatives that we should be proud of as Africans. Again, without doubt, I can tell you that Mayor Lowe is not only championing the development of the country’s youth, but she is also positively selling the images of the country in the international community,” he claimed.
Providing skills training for the youths and also empowering Gambian women for their businesses to strive, he said, is not only for their personal development but for the communities as well and the country at large.
“We will work with BCC and provide them with capacity building training. We will also partner with them in helping the mayor achieve the objective of the youth voluntarism scheme,” he said, while calling on the Gambia media to support the development initiative of Mayor Lowe.
“The development of the country is in our hands. The way we portray it is how potential investors also see it.”
“I met with Rohey Malick Lowe in an international forum. During the forum, all she was advocating for is for the development of Gambian youths and also marketing the country outside. Therefore, it is because of her continued advocacy, we are witnessing this massive initiative.”
“In her capacity as the President of Refela, a lot of women in the country and youths will be benefiting from assistance in the form of skills training. I can tell you that skills training is the only way for Africa's growth and development.”
Speaking at the convergence, Mayor Rohey Malick Lowe underscored the significance of skills development among young people, saying: “One of the ways to support the development and advancement of the country is to provide skills training for the youths who form the majority in the country. Therefore, whatever I am doing will be to ensure that the youths and women of the country are supported.”
Through the initiative, she said, many young people of the country will be trained on skills development among others.
“The project will be taking care of their accommodations, feeding, and tickets for those travelling outside the country. However, for those doing their training in the country, they will be provided monthly stipends, among others.