Pulse.ng : Building youths’ participatory capacity key to thriving democracy

By Perpetua Onuegbu

Director-General of National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS), Prof. Abubakar Suleiman, says building participatory capacity of youths is key to a thriving democracy.

Suleiman said this on Thursday at the opening of a two-day Constituency Office Internship Training Programme (COIP) for 34 interns, organised by Yiaga Africa, with support from European Union, in Abuja.

Suleiman said that without capacity building, democracy cannot thrive, adding that any society that desired a better tomorrow must develop the capacity of the young ones.

“Democracy thrives when there is robust engagement between elected representatives and their constituents.

“However, one of the perennial challenges of our democratic system has been the weak interface between the legislators and the electorate.

“This gap often results in low trust and diminished confidence in governance. The COIP initiative seeks to bridge this gap by providing young Nigerians with the opportunity to serve as interns in constituency offices.

“The focus of this programme therefore is two fold, namely: capacity building and promotion of youth participation in governance,” he said.

Suleiman said through specialised training on constituency outreach strategies and engagement tools, the interns will acquire necessary skills to enhance legislator-constituent relations.

“I am pleased to note that these training modules are based on the Constituency Relations Manual, a collaborative effort between Yiaga Africa and NILDS,” he said.

According to him, the manual offers practical guidance for effective constituency engagement, which is critical to strengthening the country’s democratic institutions.

‘In terms of promoting youth participation in governance, it is an unassailable fact that youths represent a significant demographic in Nigeria, yet their involvement in the governance processes remains limited.

“By placing young people at the heart of legislative operations, COIP not only amplifies their voices but also empowers them to become active participants in shaping the policies and decisions that impact their lives,” Suleiman said.

Also speaking, Chairman of the occasion, Hon. Dickson Tarkighir, said the programme had the potential to create a pool of talents where successive legislative offices could draw from.

“For the interns, this is an opportunity to learn, bond and create relationships that have the potential for positive impact.

“It is also an opportunity to contribute to the exercise of the mandate vested in the legislators in whose offices they shall be posted,” Tarkighir, the House Committee on Constituency Outreach, said.

He called Yiaga Africa to increase the number of interns so that the job of relating with the constituents would be made easier, while commending it for its commitment to ensuring participatory governance.

The lawmaker said that some constituencies had more than four local government areas, adding that one intern would find it difficult to traverse such constituencies.

Dr Samuel Ogwuche, Senior Coordinator, Yiaga Africa Centre for Legislative Engagement, said his organisation was positioned to deepen democracy in Nigeria and legislative governance.

“The people are at the heart of democracy; it then means that legislators should not be detached from them; there should be high level of accountability,” he said.

One of the interns, Miss Nathaniel Agwedeme from Akwa-Ibom, said the programme was commendable as it would help the youth to build the bridge between the legislators and their constituents.

She said that it would also help them bring up and implement good development strategies and policies toward making the lives of the people better.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the programme was organised by Yiaga Africa, with support from European Union-Support for Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGN). (NAN)