German Ambassador Ute König has lauded youths in Mangochi District for their active participation in decision-making and commitment to holding elected leaders accountable for development promises.
She said this on Wednesday at Lungwena Community Hall during her meeting with youths from Mangochi Lutende Constituency to appreciate progress under the Youth, Media and Parliamentary Accountability Programme, which the Centre for Social Accountability and Transparency (Csat) is implementing with funding from Germany’s Federal Foreign Office through the Zivik Funding Programme of the Institute for Foreign Cultural Relations.
The visit also gave König an opportunity to get updates on the Right to Food in Africa: From Policy to Plate Programme supported by her country’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development through Welthungerhilfe, which seeks to strengthen rural governance and advance the right to food through awareness, capacity-building and policy advocacy.
“For Germany, democracy is not just about casting a vote on election day, but also about holding government and elected leaders accountable,” she said.
During the dialogue, the youth raised concerns about inadequate access to electricity, poor condition of the Mangochi-Makanjira Road, inadequate teachers and police officers’ houses and recreational centres, among others.
“We want our member of Parliament [Louis Malukula of Democratic Progressive Party] to take our concerns to Parliament to address the challenges,” said Salimu Alidi, a youth representative.
In response, Shaibu Akim, who represented the legislator, acknowledged the concerns and assured the youth that their issues will be channelled to relevant authorities.
Mangochi District Council director of planning and development Ganizani Nkhwazi said the programme strengthened young people’s capacity to engage duty-bearers on development issues.
Csat project coordinator Albert Lulaka said the initiative sought to equip young people with skills to participate in development processes and monitor commitments made by leaders.
The Youth, Media and Parliamentary Accountability Programme is running in Mangochi, Nkhotakota and Mzimba districts.
Csat project field officer Jacob Phiri (R) interacts with König. | Ayamba Kandodo
