Minister Mounouna Foutsou, Minister of Youth Affairs and Civic Education has handed over equipment to the young beneficiaries of the "Youth Connekt Greening" in Yaoundé, June 9th 2022.
"Through the journey you have followed, you must feel proud of the commitment you have made to invest your knowledge in entrepreneurship in general and the innovative sectors of waste recycling and the promotion of renewable energies specifically. With these equipment acquired, you have the opportunity to set up viable businesses, create jobs, but also contribute to the economic growth of our country".
"...keep them carefully, make good use of them in strict compliance with your business plans. As far as we are concerned, we will never cease to reiterate, with the support of our partners, our commitment to improving the conditions for the development of young businesses, to increasing the possibilities of access to financing and to facilitating the achievement of your objectives".MINJEC.
The ceremony falls within the framework of the partnership and the 2022 Annual Work Plan of the "Youth Connekt Greening" (Ycg). In this context, it is planned to hand over equipment to young people in growth sectors such as renewable energies and waste recycling, taking into account the fact that renewable energies today represent a significant opportunity to strengthen the supply of electricity.
Minister Mounouna Foutsou was accompanied by Catherine Abena Ondoua, Minister for the Promotion of Women and the Family, Alassane Ba, Deputy Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and, by Noémie Dalmonte, Resident Representative Unfpa Cameroon.
"Renewable energies and waste recycling are a breeding ground for employment and a lever in the fight against climate change,” Audrey Moneyang, UNDP. She revealed that call for applications was launched last year, then a committee was established by the MINJEC to review the applications submitted.
Subsequently, a mini-camp to build the capacities of young people was set up, in particular in the Far North (for the Northern Regions), in the Littoral (Littoral, South-West and North-West) and in the Center (for the Centre, the South and the East) in order to perfect the capacities of the young beneficiaries.
It was futher reported that during the training process, one of the 46 winners, Martial Fonkou died. The rate of representation of young women is 33%. The project concerned the recovery of waste, the design of solar energy supply devices. More practically, the elements produced by the projects are improved ovens, biogas or even biofertilizers.
Lauréline Gouesso, spokesperson for the beneficiaries, made remarks by expressing the gratitude of all the beneficiaries to the various institutions which participated in the organization of this ceremony of which they are the central characters.
The Deputy Resident representative of UNDP Cameroon, Alassane Ba in his speech indicated that it is a deliberate choice to support young people in environmental professions. According him, this will allow young people to participate in the development of the economy while preserving the environment.
According to him, the challenges that must be met for an improvement in the condition of youth concern in particular the training of young people in the field of entrepreneurship, the connection with institutions and financial establishments to enable them to receive funding.
"Young people should recieve quality support, obtain certifications to emerge and be competitive on the national, international levels. This encourages them to make effective use of the material they have received. With us in the Sahel, when an event is watered by rain, it means that the prospects are better.”
Minister Mounouna Foutsou in his noted that "despite the difficulties experienced since its implementation, the Program has so far made it possible to 'connect approximately 600,000 to various economic, political and social opportunities; build the capacity of nearly 600 young people in entrepreneurship and leadership; finance and support 129 young project leaders in various fields, thus promoting the creation of 516 direct jobs. And as was recalled during the last Steering Committee, our concern is to progress towards the final target of the Programme, which is 5,000 decent jobs created".
"...hghlighting the Youth Connekt Greening concept, which refers to the greening of the planet, the Youth Connekt Program is positioned in the logic driven by the National Development Strategy, which consists of detecting and to enhance the value chains in the emerging areas of the green economy and the circular economy.”
It has a view to strengthening the impetus of the SND30, the head of the ministerial department recalls the commitment of the Cameroonian Government to respond more effectively to the concerns of the Youth.
As a reminder, the Youth Connekt Cameroon was officially launched on December 09, 2019. It is a joint Government - United Nations System project, which aims to strengthen the connection of young people to opportunities in order to increase their empowerment and boost their participation in development.
This project is implemented by the Ministry of Youth and Civic Education in partnership with the agencies of the United Nations System under the lead of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and with the support of private sector and civil society partners.
By Communication Unit
MINJEC