Youth Participation in the Budget

The Awakening, a weekly radio program organised by South Saharan Social Development Organisation which enlightens the youth on active citizenship and good governance, last week, focused on Youth Participation in the Budget Process.

The guest on the program, Ebele Okonkwo, Coordinator, Budget and Planning Advocacy Partnership, Enugu, stated that the youthful age is not an age of carrying placards but a time for constructive involvement in understanding governance processes. The discussion on the Zonal Network of Radio Nigeria focused on how young people can get involved in following the budget and how the entire budget can be broken down for easier understanding for young people.

In order to further bridge the gap between young people and the budgeting process, South Saharan Social Development Organization through The Awakening Program hosted twenty-five Student Union Government (SUG) representatives from ten South Eastern universities on participation in budgeting and the need for young people to imbibe transparency and accountability as values and also demand same from their institution.

With the knowledge gathered from the training, it is expected that the students are better equipped in budgeting and on how to follow up on the provisions in the budget in order to be more involved in nation building.