MEET ARIANA
Young people around the world are encouraged to get involved in making the decisions that supports them, take action and proposed solutions that will contribute to achieving the SDG’s.
Meet a group of young people in Sierra Leone who are moblising themselves to take the lead;we are happy to introduce our readers and followers to Youth Leadership and Advocacy (YLA) . YLA is a youth-led organization registered with the government of Sierra Leone through the National Youth Commission to complement the efforts of the government in youth development and gender empowerment and to mitigate the high rate of youth unemployment and gender-based violence in Sierra Leone.
YLA comprises Twelve University students across the country, six males and six females, with vast experience in advocacy and youth development issues.
As a youth organization, they organize youth empowerment programs/conferences, capacity building training/seminars for Individuals and youth groups, and advocate for gender empowerment, inclusion & participation.
Their mission is to create a platform where young people maximize their fullest potentials. With the sole aim of having a society that allows youths to enhance their enormous potentials in nation-building.
THE BRAIN BEHIND THE INTIATIVE
The executive director, Ambassador Mohamed Harass Barrie is a renowned youth and child advocate with six years of experience in the field of advocacy and youth activism. Mr. Barrie is an alumnus of the Young Political Leadership School Africa.
Between 2016 – 2018, Mohamed served as the National Vice President and Interim National President of the Children’s Forum Network, a child-led advocacy organization established by the Ministry of Gender and Children’s Affairs in 2001. Barrie was elected as the young people representative at the National Commission for Children in 2018.
Ambassador Harass Barrie is the Executive Director of Youth Leadership & Advocacy, a youth-led organization established in 2021 by a group of University students to contribute to the development of youth in Sierra Leone.
BUILDING BLOCKS FOR THE FUTURE
A few weeks ago in line with their mission, Youth Leadership & Advocacy hosted three days of training conferences on leadership, politics, and good governance with 100 youth representatives in attendance from the 16 administrative districts of Sierra Leone.
The training had in attendance guests speakers and trainers from all works of life. Some of which includes; Fantacee Wiz Kamara a well known Sierra Leonean musician and activist. Who talked about ‘The Role Of Women In Politics And National Development’
The organisation also encourages youth to engage in civic activities at community levels, at the start of the voter’s registration in Sierra Leone- the YLA team flooded the streets to encourage people participate in the voters registration process.
YLA is growing at a fast pace, as they build a community of young thoughtful concerned citizens who believe that with their collective effort, they can influence the future of young people in Sierra Leone.
Leave them a word of advice or better still you can support their work by getting in touch on: https://www.facebook.com/YLA66/
