By Our Correspondent

Agencies and parastatals charged with youth employment and empowerment programmes in Port Harcourt LGA in Rivers State have been called upon to ensure that youths along with persons with disabilities and other vulnerable groups are not marginalized in government’s activities aimed at creating employment and empowerment for youths in the state.

A cross section of the youths .

The call was made in Port Harcourt recently when an NGO known as Centre for Environment Human Rights and Development, CEHRD led a Youth Network – Marine base Youth Leadership Network to some agencies on courtesy calls.

Some of the agencies visited are Rivers State Ministry of Youth Development and Ministry of Agriculture. The network chairman who facilitated the visit on behalf of CEHRD and the networks explained to this publication that the meeting was part of a youth empowerment project being implemented in Kpor, Gokana LGA, Marine Base, PHALGA and Okana, Abua/Odual LGA by the organization with support from Nigerian Stability and Reconciliation Program, NSRP which is aimed at reducing violence in the society through a reduction of unemployment.

During the visits, representatives of Marine base youth leadership network urged the agencies represented by some of their executives to strengthen the existing employment and empowerment processes to make them more transparent, accountable and Inclusive.

The agencies were told that the system of using Rivers State National Youth Council and The Local Government Chairmen to select beneficiaries for empowerment may continue to lead to abuse of the process and sabotage the essence of the programmes as the true beneficiaries may not be selected because the process may be unduly influenced.

The Ministries were told to consider different channels of advertisement of their programmes, including mass media, to ensure that the information is widely disseminated.

The groups made case for special preferences to be given to physically challenged and other vulnerable members of the society as they may not be in position to compete favourably with others.

The representatives of the agencies with their team thanked the networks for the visit and for their interest in building peace in the state. They promised to put the suggestions made to them into consideration.

They asked that the network should always visit and be in touch regularly with the ministries as they will need to work with them to achieve the goal of a transparent, accountable and inclusive youth employment and empowerment programmes in Rivers State.