The Youth and SDGs

Hello; its been too long friends.

How many of us know what SDG stands for?.. For the unaware youth, SDG stands for sustainable development goals.

Sustainable Development Goals

Infact, last week was the first time I got to learn more about SDGs in general and how we youth relate to it.

Last Wednesday I went to a seminar on SDG hosted by my state ministry of youth development in collaboration with SDG body affiliated with the special adviser to the Governor..….

So basically what I want to talk about stems from a particular phrase from a guest speaker said today.

He said, "In This Generation, Youths See Problems Instead of Solutions And Opportunities But If You Have Seen The Problem, You Have Seen Part Of The Solution Already"

Another speaker said today that "the youths of today are lazy! We don’t think!!!….we don’t meditate or even try to come up with solutions to solve existing problems in society and that is why we are backwards and being used by politicians for their selfish machinations"

When I listened to the lectures by this two great speakers, I flashed-back to an incident I had with a friend a few days back on a WhatsApp group. so I am going to describe the incident on here in detail.

Some few weeks back, I posted about this seminar on a private WhatsApp group that included a foray of innovative friends and colleagues; but I had this friend that is very bright; but lately has been feeling discontent about the job situation in the state. His anger at the world has spread so far that he no longer saw opportunities instead he saw problems.

So after my post, he went on a rant stating how these programs are just another avenue for greedy politicians to siphon government funds instead of allocating them to their proper use.

He continued by stating how the economy looks and describing the day to day struggles he goes through to meet ends meet. He discussed the state of our detiorating economic and financial state and blamed the government for virtually everything that has gone wrong in the state.

This tirade of his aggravated me so much and I had to respond. I asked him what have you done to better yourself.

A wise man once told me, "Nobody Listens To A Nobody"

And I really want to pose this question to the youths reading my blog today, what have you done to better yourself?

Lemme tell you a short story about my experience this morning.

So I woke up early this morning by 6:30AM needing to polish my shoes and a clean haircut.

I went out to the Mallam on the road who was out by 6:40am and dropped my shoes. I called my barber, he was not yet open so I walked a while to see if I could see any barbing shops open.

Only one was, so I went in.

While having a my hair cut, I stroke up a conversation with this enigmatic young man; I told him of what I went through that morning just to find a barber and he told me he had been open since 6:30am.

I was impressed with his dedication to his profession and commended him.

Basically that young man was doing all he could to better himself so as to build a better tomorrow. Every little thing you do to improve yourself goes a long way.

You see, as youths, we are no longer leaders of tomorrow but of the present now. We exert our influence over a large group of people whether it be social media groups, church bodies, organizations or even a small group of friends; therefore, this makes up leaders and puts us under the responsibility of monitoring over the people we influence. We can no longer afford to show discontent in situations as such largesse cannot be tolerated in today’s society.

I am happy today as this seminar has given me the opportunity to connect and network with vibrant hardworking youths working toward a goal of self-improvement and sustainability.

The very first step to self-improvement is a something we all know but do little of; and that is to learn. Learning comes in various forms and as the popular adage says, “knowledge is power”

The next step is to grow yourself by relating with people that help you achieve your life vision. Relating with people that push you forward as you strive to improve yourself. This is known as "networking" and it’s the most important step that youths have to follow.

Networking ensures that you connect with the right people that help you in reaching your goals.

And there are many platforms that are open these days due to technology to make networking easier. I implore you to make use of them.

The last step to growing is advocacy. You have to advocate for something. You must have a passion and you must be willing to pursue it.

What is it you like doing? What gets your blood pumping? Channel all of your energy towards bringing awareness to that thing.

Make more people interested in your interest and you will attract a great lot of growth and investment.

As a youth, from today I plan to work hard in other to make sure that the sustainable development goals are achieved in my region and my state to the best of my ability.

Are you ready to take such a pledge with me?

Buckle up then because I have a personal vision; that by 2030, I will contribute to the eradication of poverty in The Niger Delta region.

We are youths leading sustainability and we should always strive to overcome.

Good day and remain blessed.