Marking 69th UN day -Contribution Of The Youth

United Nations Day, celebrated on 24 October is set aside by the UN General Assembly to highlight, celebrate and reflect on the work of the United Nations. This year's UN Day marks the 69th anniversary of the signing of the  United Nations Charter. Fifty one countries signed the Charter which gave birth to the formation of the UN in 1945. 

The aim is to Maintain international peace and security, Develop friendly relations among nations, help nations work together to improve the lives of poor people, to overcome hunger, disease and illiteracy, and to encourage respect for each other’s rights and freedoms and  be a centre for harmonising the actions of nations to achieve these goals.

With current membership of 193 countries,the UN continues working towards  peace, saving the world from deadly diseases such as Ebola, ensuring food security, protecting our environment, as well as  the rights of citizens everywhere.  Ghana joined the United Nations in March 1957 as the 81st country. The global theme for this year"s UN Day  is“Global Citizenship and Youth”. 

The day is being marked at a time when the world community is facing an increasing number of global challenges the Ebola outbreak . Though the Ebola outbreak is mainly concentrated in West Africa, its potential to spread and mutate into an even more infectious virus has made it a global health emergency for all members of the international community.  

In an interconnected world that is facing global challenges, the concept of global citizenship becomes increasingly important.Global citizenship embodies
an identity – and a responsibility - which transcend national borders and an awareness that individual action can contribute to global solutions.

In harnessing the potential of global citizenship, one group stands out; The youth, between the ages of 15 and 24, who make up 1.1 billion of the world’s population.

Youth protests, youth employment, and violence, particularly against girls and young women, have dominated the headlines in recent times.

Many political and social developments in recent years have been fuelled by the engagement of youth, with dramatic effects for their societies and countries.

The use of social media has helped in amplifying the voices of the youth and put young people at the centre of global debates. Recognising the significance of youth participation in decision-making, the United Nations System-wide Action Plan on Youth focuses on strong partnerships around youth issues and with young people themselves.   

Effective youth engagement needs to be inclusive, irrespective of geographical location, social status, or gender Young women and girls are usually most at risk of exclusion.

Every year an estimated 3,040 Ghanaian mothers die while giving birth.Addressing maternal mortality has been particularly challenging for Ghana and most developing countries. As well as having a reproductive health strategy in place, the government, with support from the United Nations, has put in place an MDG5 Acceleration Framework (MAF). The MAF identifies effective evidence-based interventions for achieving success.
It also identifies three key priority interventions: improving access to and use of family planning, skilled delivery, and emergency obstetric and newborn  care.In the past decade, the United Nations has also taken a more holistic and rights based view of maternal health.

To this end, the United Nations has been working to enhance the role of women, prevent child marriage, increase girls’ access to education, educate and abolish  Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C), and support the development of adolescent life skills.  Girls’ education is another critical component for strengthening their engagement in political debates and nation building. 

Although Ghana has achieved parity between boys and girls in primary school, the gap begins to show in secondary school and by the tertiary level there are approximately twice as many boys as girls. Girls who marry as children are less likely to attend school and complete their secondary education, which has negative health and economic consequences for the wider community. Closing the gap between boys and girls in education and preventing maternal  death are important prerequisites for allowing girls to contribute to global solutions in their role as global citizens, and to play their part in effective nation building.