The Ministry of Youth has been conducting youth outreach programmes since November last year and is committed to the development of young people around the country.
The Hon. Minister for Youth and Sports Laisenia Tuitubou and senior officials of the ministry have taken the bold step of reaching out to the young people in the rural areas who are deprived from the services of the ministry.
“The talanoa session is a forum where the ministry officials stoop to the level of the youths and communicate, receive feedbacks of the quality of services we provide and listen to their needs,” Minister Tuitubou said
“We are making every effort to reach out to all the youths all over Fiji. They can be rest assured that we will reach out to them and find means of providing them with services that often eluded them,” he said.
“These visits and talanoa sessions will help shape and determine the kind of services we will provide based on the needs of the youths and our assessments – that will guarantee success and tangible development.”
The Minister said youths are often influenced by their emotions and lack the proper guidance and support.
“Our ministry will ensure that we constantly provide the necessary support and advice to help produce successful youth clubs that can contribute positively to nation building and economic prosperity,” Mr Tuitubou said.
Youth and Sports permanent secretary Mr Josefa Sania after returning from Yasawa with the ministry delegation said; “The ministry will put on hold all its trainings until we have visited all the divisions in Fiji.”
“The recent talanoa sessions has enabled us to gauge the trainings we are providing against the real needs of the youths especially in rural areas,” Mr Sania said.
“The delay will ensure that the trainings are re-designed and re-packaged to ensure maximum effectiveness and positive results.
“We will also consult and seek support from other government departments for supplementary trainings and support for the sake of youth development,” he added.
Mr Sania said the consultations would dictate the mobile skills training that are delivered to rural based youth clubs.
The ministry delegation will continue their visits in the western division this week and have plans in place for consultations in the Northern Division as well as the Eastern Division maritime zones.
DEPTFO