Every Girl-child deserves an education!

Youth for Change (Y4C) engages Nigerian Youths on a One-Day Workshop

January 26th

, 2017

By: Chris Uzoh

Emmanuel Alumona, the Founder of Youth for Change, is a young peace-builder from Nigeria. He is a Volunteer with Amnesty International, and as the Founder of Youths for Change Nigeria, Emmanuel organizes peace-building programs to ensure that other youth do not engage in violent extremism. Having participated in the Global Youth Forum on Security and Violence Extremism (21-22 August, 2016, Jordan) and the Global Youth Summit against Violence Extremism (28 September, 2016, New York), Emmanuel thought it wise to organize an event in Abuja to discuss relevant topics for the youth, peace and security agenda.

The title of the workshop which was “Young People, Peace-building and Violent Extremism” aimed at driving home the theme “Sustainable Peace and Nation Building: A Necessity for Nigeria’s Greatness by 2035”. This event was held on January 26, 2017 at the Gadonasko Event Auditorium, Kubwa, Abuja.

The event which hosted a total number of about 307 young people, had different categories from all walks of life – government officials, students, military, social change makers, young leaders and social entrepreneurs.

It recorded a great success and it was a great honour for our team to finally have the opportunity to meet with this group of young people with a history of violent extremism in order to create a sustainable network for further empowerment initiatives so as to prepare them as agents of peace and counter violent extremism, especially in the northern part of Nigeria where violent extremism is the order of the day.

As a main speaker during the workshop, sharing his experiences and outcomes of the Summit with over 30 young people and different authorities of the diverse fields, Emmanuel created great impact which the participants saw as an unforgettable opportunity. The Chief speaker, Emmanuel, used this opportunity to share with them the basic ways to counter radicalism, promote peace and engage in the Youth for Change Initiatives, so as to battle insecurity and violence extremism together.

While speaking to the participants, Emmanuel used his personal experiences and story of his transition from an agent of violent extremism to an Ambassador of peace as a major point of motivation during his discussion. He equally used the opportunity to talk about Global Citizenship, YOUTHS FOR CHANGE and some of its activities.

At the end of the event, the participants and management of the event centre expressed their gratitude to Youth for Change initiative, pledging to uphold peace and security and called on the Organizers of the epoch making event to always involve them in all their youth empowerment initiatives.