By Eunice Hilda A. Mensah
Accra, May 2, GNA – Young people drawn from selected regions of the country have undergone training on the “Young Citizens Scorecard” as part of efforts to strengthen youth participation in social accountability and policy influence at the community level.
The training, held in Accra under the “Youth Accelerator for Change Project” being implemented by Plan International Ghana, brought together youth leaders from the Volta, Central, Greater Accra and Northern regions, as well as representatives of youth-led advocacy groups and organisations of persons with disabilities.
The Young Citizens Scorecard is a social accountability tool designed to enable young people to assess the quality of services delivered by duty bearers in their communities, including health and education services, and to engage stakeholders constructively to improve outcomes.
Ms Philomina Adjei, Youth Facilitator of the Youth Accelerator for Change Project and Volta Regional Focal Representative for the “She Leads Social Movement Ghana”, told the Ghana News Agency that the training would equip participants to serve as trainers of trainers in their respective communities.
She explained that the scorecard process followed four key phases, beginning with preparation, planning and analysis, followed by the scoring of services by community members.
“The third phase involves interface meetings between young people and relevant stakeholders, while the final phase focuses on follow-up actions and influencing policies based on the findings,” she said.
Ms Adjei said participants were expected to return to their regions to train other young people and guide them to collectively assess services being provided in their communities.
The ultimate goal, she explained was to empower young people to identify service delivery gaps, engage duty bearers and agree on action plans that would enhance the wellbeing of children and young people.
According to her, the training was a component of the three-year Youth Accelerator for Change Project, which focused on building the capacity of youth-led advocacy groups and social enterprises, while also grooming Global Youth Ambassadors to represent Ghanaian youth at international platforms such as the Commission on the Status of Women.
Ms Adjei said the selection of participants was informed by their active involvement in youth advocacy, particularly members of the She Leads Social Movement Ghana, a network of young people who had previously participated in child- and youth-centred projects and were later organised to amplify advocacy efforts at the regional level.
“In addition to movement members, delegates from other youth-led advocacy groups in the Volta Region and Greater Accra were also selected to ensure broader reach and impact,” she said.
She noted that the scorecard process was context-specific and could take up to a year to complete, including community consultations, scoring of services, stakeholder engagement and monitoring of agreed actions.
Mr Sampson Owusu Bempah, Chair of the interim working group of the Ghana Network of Youth with Disabilities, described the training as a timely intervention that would enable young people to engage decision-makers using evidence-based and rational approaches.
He said the scorecard framework would help move youth advocacy away from perceptions of radicalism towards constructive collaboration with duty bearers.
“With this well-tested framework, we are able to justify our concerns and engage decision-makers effectively to achieve the changes we seek,” he said.
Mr Bempah said he would share the knowledge and resources acquired with members of the interim committee of the Ghana Network of Youth with Disabilities and work with district-level youth officers to ensure that social accountability was extended to decentralised levels.
The approach, he said would strengthen collaboration with institutions such as the National Youth Authority and accelerate development outcomes for young people, including persons with disabilities.
The Youth Accelerator for Change Project seeks to empower young people already leading advocacy initiatives to play a more effective role in governance and service delivery at the community level.
GNA
Edited by George-Ramsey Benamba
By Eunice Hilda A. Mensah