By Kaleb Yikii

Terego

Terego District celebrates her Maiden Belated International Youth Day, under the theme: accelerating recovery from the impact of COVID-19 and full implementation of the 2023 agenda, the Role of Youth in development.
 
While presenting children demands Brian Desire a P6 Pupil from Holy Trinity Nursery and Primary School in Leju Town council says, because the youth have refused to embrace hard work the weak parents and grant parents find themselves taking care of the children the youth produce.

The female Youth Councilor Terego district Tairu Annette Draberu says: “Please I urge all of us, do not prepare the future for us but rater prepare the future for us.”
The State Minister of Urban Development Hon Mario Obiga Kania says, youths should have a Positive and Healthy competitive attitude. “If you tell me I am old, I will tell you that you are a lier. For I am never old! I will only be old when I am resting in my grave!” Kania encourages.  
Teenage pregnancy issues

In this celebration, Youth echoed the need for all the Stake holders in Terego District to take their roles and responsibilities seriously in a bid to curb the skyrocketing teenage pregnancy in the district.
 
Emmanuel Ayikobua the Youth Chairman Aiivu Sub County in Terego District says in Orukurua Primary School in Aiivu Sub County there are four teenage girls who got pregnant but only three were allowed to return to school but these girls face a lot of discrimination from their peers at the school. “Two of The pregnant girls are thirteen years each whereas the other is 14 whereas the eldest is 16 years.” He reveals.
 
Richard Matua who represented the Implementing Partners in Imvepi Refugee Settlement hosted by Terego District; while addressing the stake holders in the gathering says, Refugee Youth and Host Community Youth Grapple with a lot of issues including teenage pregnancies, household poverty and unemployment among many other untold Miseries.  “These are outstanding issues that are affecting the youth bot in the Camps and Terego district at large.
 
Meanwhile, Terego Youth Chairman Buni Ronald while giving the teenage pregnancy Statistics at the District level says in the financial year 2020/2021 about 1613 teenage girls got pregnant whereas, in the financial year 2020/2021 1557 teenage girls got pregnant.

However, Rtd Colonel Kibriani Amako the Senior Presidential Advisor and the Supervisor of RDCs in Northern Uganda says parents have abdicated their roles totally and leaving the youth un- attended to. He continued that he has found a new culture introduced in west Nile where when the sun is setting, parents release their children to go outside that they are going to get ideas from their peers.

COVER PHOTO: Hon Mario Obiga Kania addreessing stakeholders during youth day celebrations By Kaleb Yikii