Accra, Feb 23, GNA - The Ghana Conference of Religions for Peace (GCRP), is to bring pressure to bear on the government to ensure that it expedites action on the formulation of the National Youth Policy (NYP). The GCRP, which is an umbrella body of faith based organisations in the country, including the Christian Council, the Catholic Bishops Conference and the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission, said it was high time the country developed her NYP, adding that it would in the coming days embark on series of advocacy programmes to get government to appreciate the importance of the existence of the document and work towards developing it.

Alhaji Muhammad Kpakpo Addo, Acting Executive Secretary and Programme Coordinator of GCRP, announced this to the Ghana News Agency during a day's capacity building workshop for over 50 youths drawn from the country's religious organizations in Accra.

The workshop, which was on the theme "Empowering the Youth as Future Leaders for Peace and Development", was to build their leadership skills and capacity to effectively assume leadership roles and responsibilities for the progress of society.

Alhaji Addo said the lack of NYP, which would indicate the direction to which the youth should go, was affecting youth development and empowerment, adding this did not augur well for a country that sought to ensure inclusive participation in national affairs.

Ghana has been fine-tuning her NYP for over a decade now with no end in sight as to when it will be finalized, but Alhaji Kpakpo Addo said the GCRP's intended campaign would turn the situation around and have the policy passed into law, and that Ghanaian youth would know what it entailed and how to access them.

He told the youth to avail themselves of the opportunities that existed in the country, adding that they should not wait to get all resources before moving to implement their goals. He said the youth needed to make conscious efforts, take advantage of the opportunities and prepare themselves adequately for the future because it belonged to them.

He called on the youth to make good use of their time to be able to catch up with the rest of the world.

Mr Mahama Braimah, a Training Specialist and Resource Person, observed that "with the proper orientation, mindset, knowledge and leadership skills, the youth can contribute a lot to national development". Mr Braimah therefore, implored the youth not to always wait for assistance but to make conscious efforts and take the first step towards achieving their goals.

"You do not have to be in a leadership position before you offer leadership and bring change to your community", he said, and called on the youth to consider any engagement as service to humanity rather than for monetary gains.

The GCRP, which was conceived in 2002 by the country's religious and faith based bodies, also engages in conflict resolution activities and HIV/AIDS education, among others to ensure peaceful co-existence and a healthy society.