Youths as catalysts of change

SUMESH SHIWAKOTY

Youths need to play the role of a catalyst for enhancing development projects and ensuring good governance and transparency. Nepal is passing through a traumatic transition. The prolonged transition has taken a toll on the country’s economy and development. The youth’s role has further become more important.

The youth have historically played proactive roles in ushering their respective countries into political, social and economic reforms. Youth movements have become paramount in the context of Nepal. The youth’s ideas in Nepal are undermined by politicians because the youths are still viewed as inexperienced. The youths are considered as junior and are often exploited as volunteers. These politicians keep using the youths for their petty political interests and later abandon them after their interest is served. There are no organized ways out for the youths to strengthen their personality and build up their career. So, many youths with immense potential are frustrated and aim to migrate abroad.

Today, it’s difficult to find youths in rural area because youths are migrating to urban areas for a better future and many are compelled to sell their labor in foreign countries, and they are sending the much needed remittances back home. Much of the country’s economy banks on remittances. So its youths who should create the environment for foreign investments in our country and create better employment opportunities that will check brain drain and help make a prosperous Nepal.

Recently, while attteding the “Global Development Youth Conference” at Xi’an city of China, I asked Mrs. Yan Michelle Zhang, an officer of The World Bank, why our neighboring countries India and China were making amazing economic progress but Nepal was still backward. She answered, “The main task of the World Bank is also to create the environment for investment but no investor wants to invest in those nations where there is no political stability.” So, it is important to create political stability in the country for foreign investment and youth mobilization is imperative towards this end.

A few months before Nepal’s first elected Constituent Assembly (CA) was dissolved without completing its assigned job of promulgating a new constitution. This has brought further frustration to the people, and, thus, this is a difficult time we are facing in our history. Of course, this is a great tragedy but we youths should transform this tragedy into power. As people are quite depressed about the country’s future, we youths need to bring hope among them. We should make them aware about the success we have achieved in the last few years. We should remind the people of our success in ousting monarchy and introducing Nepal as a democratic-republic. Another success we achieved was bringing the Maoists into the peace-process. Thus, instead of letting people blame our leadership for the dissolution of CA, we youths should advocate for political liberalization as a wave, which would address important issues of the post conflict, including identity issues and economic enhancement. Thus it is our onus to persuade people with the fact that success comes with failure and failure is not the end. A lot of examples of failures exist in the world, but finally they have been solved. It doesn’t matter how many times we fail, but what actually matter is how many times we succeed. Thus, what actually counts is whether the solution we bring will be sustainable or not?

At this time, constitution-drafting task is in a limbo which is all the more a reason for great concern. Without a new constitution in place, the transitional phase will linger on to the dismay of all. The political parties are engaged in blame-games, which have raised mistrust. Strikes have become common phenomena. Amidst such worsening security situation, conduction of elections may be a formidable task. But prolonging the elections means pushing the whole nation into dark uncertainty and might cause a big accident. So in this present time the role of youths is undeniably important.

nstead of carrying a flag of a particular party and engaging in blame-game, youths should impartially watch all political activities and point out the mistakes of all parties. It is also the responsibility of ours to not only give pressure to political parties but also to create proper environment for political dialogues. At the same time, we should also have the capacity to co-ordinate between all stakeholders such as civil society, media, political parties and corporate houses and also should play the role of mediator between them to create the feeling of goodwill among them which will definitely assist them to come to mutual agreement, and, thus, help to create the environment for elections.

This is the most difficult period in our country. Therefore, we youths need to prove ourselves as a major stakeholder and responsible group by involving ourselves in various activities that will contribute to peace, development and harmony in the country. At this time, if we youths failed in our responsibility then the country may plunge into a big crisis. Our positive thoughts and steps will materialize our dream of a prosperous and new Nepal.

Sumesh1993@gmail.com