Hope for Wayward Youth and Children
Youth In Africa (YIA) is a group helping to empower the street kids and disadvantaged young people of Liberia. After discovering RESPECT International through a joint program between the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), YIA expressed its interest in the letter exchange program in November 2008.
YIA is looking forward to developing relationships between the youth of Liberia and Canada through the pen-pal scheme, as well as generating awareness of the work they do and the problems they face. To promote this awareness, a member of YIA will be interviewed for RESPECT International, allowing a greater understanding of the organization's aims and aspirations.
When Youth in Africa joined RESPECT International's pen-pal program I was able to interview Titus Allen Sebo, the director, and discover more about the organization's work and the problems it faces.
YIA was founded in Senegal on October 6, 2007, and has since established a base in Monrovia, Liberia. Membership is open to every Liberian who exhibit a strong moral attitude and are ready to work for the promotion of the positive image of Liberia. There are now just over 500 young people from various communities in and around the country involved in the project.
The association has many specific targets, which relate to the overall aim of uniting all Liberians for the purpose of presenting strong, wholesome, educated, morally-sound and well-respected young people.
Primarily, they are working towards building a youth centre for troubled teens where educational and social activities can take place. IT skills and access to computers is increasingly important, and this forms another main part of the work of YIA. The organization hopes to run computer programs across the country and introduce as many young people as possible to the new technology.
Education is also provided, including training which can be passed on to other communities and thereby give the children a purpose and useful work experience. Tutoring in leadership also takes place, with focus on the Liberian civil-rights efforts.
In addition, there is a collaborative effort to reduce the problems of littering, help keep youths alcohol and drug free, as well as cross-country trips to allow the children to experience new sights and people and promote togetherness.
Much of the work takes place with the help of friends and non-governmental organizations, but resources are limited. YIA is only able to pay school fees for some of its children, and facilities need to be expanded. The most pressing requirements are for more computers, a car and better funding for facilities and school fees. There is also a need to help develop interpersonal skills among the young people and it is hoped this will be achieved through participation in the pen-pal scheme.
The work of the organization is represented by their emblem, which includes the colours yellow, green and white. Yellow signifies a new dawn after a period of darkness, green represents freshness and a new beginning and, finally, white stands for accountability, transparency, purity and oneness in achieving goals.