You must think Beyond the Ordinary – GCMA Prez charges youth
The Founding President of Global Changemakers Africa (GCMA), Mr Eric Oduro Kwapong has charged Ghanaian youth to think beyond the ordinary and bring the necessary development changes in their communities.
According to him, the youth are not only future leaders but have the great potential of bringing the needed change they want and therefore must act positively and with the zeal to mitigate the challenges facing their communities.
Mr. Kwapong made the call during a Youth Summit organized by the Global Changemakers Africa for leadership of some tertiary institutions in the country at the Knutsford University College in Accra, on Friday, December 3, 2021.
The Global Change Makers Africa (GCMA) Movement is an Initiative of TransLead Consult, a human capital and leadership capacity development entity.
The summit was focused on addressing the transformational and developmental challenges of the current global trend, particularly among young people.
Speaking at the TransLead Summit was on the theme “Reaching and Empowering a critical Generation,” Mr. Kwapong said it was the hope that at the end of the summit, the youth would generate strong interest in practical and innovative solutions for sustainable transformational development, particularly on the African Continent.
The objective of GCMA, he said is to build the capacity of youth between the ages of fifteen and forty-five years in current policy and decision-making processes at the national, sub-regional and continental levels, emphasizing that, “we plan to inculcate in the youth the spirit of servant leadership.”
In his considered view, the current state of youth leadership in Ghana, especially those at the tertiary institutions leaves much to be desired, hence, the time for those serving at the youth leadership level to understand the essence of servant leadership instead of self-serving student leadership.
Mr Kwapong, therefore, admonished student leaders and the youth, in general, to be servant-leadership driven when aspiring for positions in various institutions they find themselves.
He added that with the increasing rates of youth activism and participation in politics,” it is imperative that the youth, especially student leaders are equipped with the necessary skills for transformative leadership.”
“We need to make sure we are able to get some of these young people to the policy table. They don’t need to literally have a seat at the policy table but they should be able to influence policies that impact the life of the youth. Leaders have the knowledge, courage, and all that it takes to influence” he said.
The Founding President of GCMA noted that student leadership today is like a travel document to the political space, stressing that most of them sought self-interest instead of the service to the students than to the nation and youth.
Similarly, Mr. Seth Oteng. Executive Director of Youth Bridge Foundation challenged the youth who want to lead to master a skill and become skilful and authoritative.
He added that youth who want to be in leadership positions must build for themselves a culture of exceptional respect for the elders and their peers while ensuring that they are physically and mentally sound.
Ms. Irene Elizabeth Logan, an Entrepreneur charged the youth and student leaders to be creative, innovative and as well ensure they contribute to the development of their communities.
On his part, the President of the Private Universities Students Association of Ghana (PUSAG), Mr. Shamsu Alhassan called on leaders and institutions of state to support the youth to realize their potentials so they become good future leaders for the development of the country.
He, however, bemoaned the high level at which the youth abuse the availability of technology and allow themselves to be negatively influenced by social media, which has in a way lowered the moral fabric of the society.
Other speakers were Dr. Kwabena Bempah. Dep. Director-General, Ghana Education Service, and Ms. Jessica Opare-Saforo. TV Personality/ Programmes Manager, Citi FM and Mrs. Kokui Selormy Hansen. Breakfast Show Panel Host. Citi FM
Participants at the TransLead Summit who were mostly students leaders were taken through some topics including Transformational Leadership, Faith Leadership, Entrepreneurial Leadership and Digital Leadership.
Source: expressnewsghana.com
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