KATHMANDU – President Ramchandra Paudel has underlined the need to cultivate positive thoughts and develop feelings of self-respect and self-sufficiency. As he believed, these qualities are essential for developing skills, entrepreneurship, and exploring the nation’s potential in keeping with available resources.
In his address to the Nepal Youth Conference, 2024 here today, the President said this. The event was jointly organized by the Ministry of Youth and Sports, the National Youth Council, and the United Nations on the occasion of International Youth Day.
How to encourage youth force to the nation-building efforts has emerged as a crucial challenge against the backdrop of a large exodus of youths from the country, the President said, adding, “Nepal need not cry for prosperity provided that available natural potentials are explored and properly utilised.
He also spoke of the need for a fresh policy to address youths’ needs and sentiments changed with the IT innovations and the changing societal contexts. Policy capable of offering suitable opportunities for securing youths’ significant contribution to the holistic development of the State is warranted, according to the Head of the State.
“It is necessary to build an atmosphere conducive for the full exercise of political, economic, social and cultural rights of citizens with an increased participation of youths in the nation’s development and to offer special opportunities in education, health, employment, participation, sports and entertainment sectors targeting youths for their empowerment and development,” he said.
He also reminded of the commencement of institutional efforts from an official level to address the concerns of youths with the establishment of the then Ministry of Youths, Sports, and Culture in 2052 BS. He also stated that the ninth five-year plan attempted to incorporate the issues of youths in the planned development endeavors.
It is noted that the government in 2066 BS defined people aged 16-40 as youths and the Youth Policy, 2066 was issued the first time in the country, subsequently, it was followed by the promulgation of the National Youth Policy, 2072 BS (2015).
It is urgent to address the problems and challenges related to youths in the context of changing global scenarios and IT innovations, according to the President. To address these challenges, it is necessary to encourage youths to dedicate themselves to the cause of nations and uphold personal freedom, principles of universal human rights, democratic norms, and values, promote world peace, the feeling of co-existence, conserve, preserve environmental resources, maintain religious, linguistic, cultural tolerance, address youths’ need for health, education, and employment and these all will be achievable through the implementation of principles of equality and equitable distribution, he added.
The President described the youths as the pioneers of the political, economic, social and cultural transformation and the agents of change as well as the precious wealth of the nation.
On the occasion, Minister for Youth and Sports Teju Lal Chaudhary spoke of the need of moving ahead by linking the youths to the concepts of IT development and sustainable development in the present world context.
According to him, this year’s the International Youth Day also highlighted on these two themes. “Our society and daily life is changing rapidly along with the advancement of digital technology in the present world context. We have to move ahead towards producing technical manpower internalizing the climate change situation while accepting the significance of the digital transformation in the efforts for achieving the sustainable development goals,” he said.
He reiterated that the government is serious towards the country’s development and prosperity by providing to the youths basic needs like education, health and employment.
UN Resident Coordinator Haana Singer-Hamdy said the issues to be raised and the Declaration to be issued in this conference would be important for the Summit of the Future to be organized in New York, USA in coming September, with the objective of connecting the youths across the world.
She stressed that the youths should remain at the forefront and advocate on climate change and sustainable development issues, urging for seriousness on the topics of gender equality and climate change along with investing in skill and technology enhancement.
Deputy Mayor of Kathmandu Metropolitan City, Sunita Dangol said that although the government has policies and programmes on promoting the youths, there were problems in terms of their effective implementation, majorly in creating employment within the country.
“Youths have possibilities, zeal and creativity within them, but Nepal’s main challenge lies in job creation. Prosperity is achieved through employment. It is time for youths to also think about the future and not only of the present,” she said.
Stating that the youths should be considered as an asset of the nation, Deputy Mayor Dangol said the youth’s participation and activeness in politics in the recent time has shown the light of hope.
