Harnessing innovative potential of youths and adolescents in adopting development programmes can help implement the sustainable development goals (SDGs) ensuring reflection of their views.The opinion came at a dialogue titled "Adolescent and Youth Engagement in Development: Northern Bangladesh Context" held at Teesta conference room of RDRS Bangladesh in Rangpur on Sunday.
A group of volunteer organisations of teenagers with assistance of UNICEF and Rangpur City Corporation organised the dialogue with participation of over 50 youths and adolescents from different upazilas of Rangpur district.
Newly appointed UNICEF Rangpur and Rajshahi Divisional Chief AH Towfique Ahmed, Secretary of Rangpur City Corporation secretary Ummey Fatema, representatives of volunteer organizations Hritik, Munim, Proggya Parmita, Moumita Hiya, Hossain, Al Amin, Lubna and officials of UNICEF Rangpur office participated in the discussion.
The participating youths and students raised issues like enhancing awareness about the Covid-19 vaccine, ensuring a life free from child marriage and child labour, a child-friendly environment and services and a violence-free and discrimination-free life for children and adolescents.
They expressed their opinions on reducing use of plastic and making and using reusable eco-friendly safe products, introducing climate change adaptation technologies and using energy-efficient and affordable technologies for addressing environmental challenges.
They said women and children are most vulnerable to sexual abuse and violence in any kind of natural disasters, economic crisis and humanitarian situation and teenage girls become victims of online harassment and cyber-bullying.
They stressed on increasing youth participation in planning non-discriminatory development programmes and social systems ensuring participation of Hijra and transgender communities, strengthening awareness programmes against sexual harassment and violence and prevention of childmarriage, improving quality of health services, raising awareness about safe reproductive health care and adolescent health care in development programmes.
AH Towfique Ahmed highly appreciated the public awareness programmes taken by members of the volunteer organisations of youths and adolescents since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.
He especially emphasized on coordination of voluntary organizations and taking up training and comprehensive programmes to ensure reflection of opinions of youths, children and adolescents in the development programmes.
Towfique also called upon policy makers, development agencies, people and leadership to utilise innovative capacities of youths in identifying impacts of crises like climate change to resolve those and take forward joint efforts of youths and adolescents in the implementation of SDGs.
Ummey Fatema highlighted the initiatives of Rangpur City Corporation to improve the quality of life of children and thanked UNICEF for its support in increasing the capacity of youths, children and teenagers for effective participation in development programmes.
