Govt neglecting youths

NATIONAL Planning and Monitoring Minister Sam Basil has admitted that the Government has not done enough to help the youths in the country.
Speaking during the 19th Evangelical Lutheran Church (ELC) of Papua New Guinea National Youth Conference in Saya, Lababia in Morobe, on Monday, Basil said the government had failed to help the youth and commended churches for doing their part.
“If churches were not there, there would be huge law and order problems and the Government acknowledged that,” Basil said.
“I admit we have not done enough to help the youths in the country.”
Basil urged churches and other organisations dealing with youths to bring to the state challenges and issues faced in order to get Government assistance.
“What challenges you’ve encountered and found about the youths, the Government needs to know too to address their problems,” he said.
“The churches must tell us so we can incorporate this into our plan.”
The conference started on Monday and ends on Saturday.
The conference saw thousands of youths from the church’s 17 districts attend.
ELCPNG national youth director Robert Martin said the conference would set a new direction for the country’s Lutheran youths.
“The Government had been talking about empowering youths and it is a concern for us on how we will fit our young people into society,” Martin said.
Basil said the recent law and order problems in Wau was because of youths.
“It all comes back to how we address that.
“Churches have done a lot and the Government has to look at making these youths useful.
“We must train them and provide them job opportunities.
“We have resources.
“We will create downstream processing that will create jobs.”
Basil said the problem of unemployed youths would get worse unless tangible steps were taken to make them useful members of society.