Peace Corps to pull out of Youth Project
Peace Corps to pull out of Youth Project
TABBY MOYO
THE Youth Development Project run by the United States Peace Corps and the Ministry of Youth and Sport is to be terminated at the end of next year.
The Project was started in 1993 with the aim of establishing infrastructure to provide services to youth in employment, youth development, job training, juvenile justice, environmental education and health as well as increasing youth participation in economic, social and civil development.
No reasons were given for the termination of the Peace Corps involvement in the project in a press release issued by the United States Information Service (USIS) in Windhoek Monday.
The USIS statement merely said that the project "will be successfully completed in December 1999".
However, the "withdrawal" of the Peace Corps from the Youth Development Project has been the subject of discussion in certain circles for a while, with speculation rife that the Ministry of Youth's lack of support for the project was the main reason for the project coming to an end.
Peace Corps Director Colden Murchinson declined to comment on the matter when approached by The Namibian recently, while the Youth and Sport Ministry said the matter was still under discussion.
The USIS statement said the pilot youth project had achieved many successes, among them assisting Namibian youth and sports specialists in developing significant planning and programme development skills, increasing the number of female participants in project initiation and management, establishing women and child protection committees and units and establishing peer counselling and juvenile justice programmes.
The project also established income-generating youth projects, regional inter-ministerial HIV-AIDS programmes and conducted youth life skills workshops.
"Peace Corps continues its strong commitment to youth development in Namibia. Peace Corps volunteers in Namibia are serving in other youth-related projects such as primary education, teacher training and secondary education," Monday's statement by USIS said.
"The work of more than 130 volunteers offers Namibia's youth access to skills and opportunities that are not otherwise available," the Americans said.
July 7, 1998
