MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS (MDGs) CAMPAIGN: - OFFERING THE YOUTH A VOICE

In September 2000, a record 189 Heads of States and Leaders of Governments, congregated in New York for a ground breaking UN summit. Central to the concerns of the meeting, was a new agenda for the world at the dawn millennium’s dawn, it was clear that most of the previous development models had failed in all their pretences to address poverty and social imbalances.

The World Bank in 2001 noted that, although global wealth, technological capacities, and linkages have improved greatly during the last 50 years, the wealth is however, unequally distributed thus creating major gaps regionally and nationally. For instance, the gap between the 20 richest and 20 poorest nations has doubled in the last forty years. Out of the 6 billion people in the world, 2.8 billion live on less than $2 and 1.2 billion on less than $1 per day. As far as regional manifestation of poverty is concerned 43.5% of the poor live in South East Asia; 24.3% in Sub Saharan Africa; 23.2% in East Asia and Pacific; 6.5% in Latin America and the Caribbean; 2.0% in Europe and Central Asia and 0.5% in Middle East and North.

The prevalence of a myriad of conflicts and wars in their various and forms in almost all corners of the world are just manifest of this grave situation in an otherwise peaceful world. The ravages of HIV/AIDS on whole civilizations threatens the very social fabric of many communities especially in Sub Saharan Africa further diminishing their capacities to withstand the upheavals of a rapidly globalizing world. The upsurge in terrorism can also be threaded into the hopelessness bereft of being poor.

The current economic interactions in the form of packages such as SAPs, PRSPs, have brought benefits to a few at the expense of the majority of the poor fuelling the crisis they were conceived to address. Regional initiatives like the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) continue to be a good vehicle for liberalization of the African economies impacting on social services like health, education. Again they are not measurable or time bound but just statements of intent. This makes their operationalization very difficult. The world needs a clearer blueprint than a set of rosy ideas and intent bordering on benevolence.

The Millennium Development Goals are so far an attempt in addressing the scandal of poverty. They are the human declaration to address the backlash of the inequality and imbalance visited on the world by excesses of unequal wealth. They are a modest but comprehensive set of principles, committing the world to be responsive to a challenge that threatens its own very survival. They are bound in a framework that boasts of numerical and time-bund targets that incorporate the SMART (Specific Measurable Achievable Realistic Tangible) approach in their goal of halving poverty by 2015.

The youth cannot afford to abscond, or delegate their responsibility at this critical juncture in humanities progress towards a better future. They also cannot afford to watch from the sidelines and argue from the outside. This is hinged on a couple of fundamental reasons that will greatly inform their action and nature of influence.

First, the process of fighting and eradicating poverty is an ongoing process. In a world where whole societies like in Sub Saharan Africa are witnessing reversals in gains made over decades instead of progress the situation is particularly worrying. For there to be a turn around new actors other than those who have participated in this downward spiral wittingly or unwittingly need to be brought onboard.

Second, the offer to be involved has been extended even if at its subtlest. Meaning that the role of the youth in the whole process has been recognized and its now time for the youth to seize its window of opportunity and bring on board its specific competencies as they may reinforce the realization of the end goals.

Third, this global tragedy as exemplified by the scandal of poverty has its foundation on the question of labour and resources. As long as the position of the dominant global ideology is control, domination and exploitation then the future continues to be bleak. The shift towards equity as a challenge to reverse this pervasive agenda is not only a necessity but is immediate in its need.

Finally, global governments that previously acted as the sites of resource allocation and a depository of their people’s values and aspirations are today handicapped. With the ascendancy of global finance capital to near dogma levels and the ravages left in the wake of their stampede, governments are now mere observers. The challenge to sovereignty is all too stark for all to see. When governments are subservient to private capital the need for a reawakening is acutely in need.

As the pillar of the downtrodden, the youth have to provide a voice for the voiceless. Rejecting co-option to the agency of the foregoing mainstream thinking is the new challenge of the youth in this millennium. With finance capital ravaging the world at its wish and co-opting all and sundry to its agency, the youth voice has to be loud and clear. That the world cannot progress on this warped sense of development. It is self consuming, self destructing and Frankenstein in its operationalization.

In this context, the Millennium Development Goals are the path through which to actualize a paradigm shift. It is the blueprint to guide them from the economic wilderness of want and hopelessness to that of availability, sharing and equity. The youth as purveyor of the celestial palace have to reinvigorate the vision of heaven of bounty, happiness and brotherhood. We have to beef the clarion call hinged on, “ARISE YE MIGHTY PEOPLE!!!

Article Topic

• Year of African Youth