He said the provision of conducive environment and robust strategies would help keep negative influences at bay and position the youth to integrate seamlessly into productive society, needing doubling of efforts.

Mr Baku said this at a celebration to mark this year's International Youth Day organised by the Tongu Cluster of the Organization at Mafi Adidome in the Central Tongu District of the Volta Region.

This year's Youth Day is on the theme, "creating safe spaces for our youth" and held on the Sunday August 12. Mr Baku said the celebration must rehash the young generation's lack of safe spaces, devoid of all forms of abuse and repressive practices such as child marriages and child labour, as well as one which guaranteed social justice.

"Let us not pay mere lip service to the celebration, but prioritise the role of young women and men as essential partners of change as well as an opportunity to raise awareness of the challenges and hardships facing the world's youth," he said.

Mr Baku said the youth must be adequately resourced with the requisite training and resources to unearth their skills and talents. He said the 19 Policy Priority Areas under Section six of the National Youth Policy (2010) would help meet the development needs of the youth, and called on Government to resource District Assemblies implementing them.

Mr Baku said Compassion International Ghana would continue to champion the progression of the youth, and asked young people to embrace volunteerism, and exhibit good moral values. Torgbe Adzima IV, Dufia of Mafi Adidome, said adolescence was a crucial stage where one could lose focus in life by falling to abuse of drugs, laziness and other mitigations.

He added that bad peer influence created fertile grounds for breeding negative habits, and asked the youth to position themselves for the future.  Mr Thomas Moore Zonyrah, District Chief Executive of Central Tongu, lamented that teenage pregnancies and drug abuse had hit worrying levels in the area, and added his voice to calls for parents and other stakeholders to exhibit full responsibility.

He said the Mafi Kumasi Central market project would soon be completed to provide convenient outlets for traders and entrepreneurs in the area. Compassion International Ghana currently works with 298 local churches to offer a Christian centred approach to youth development.

About 34,000 of its 75,000 registered beneficiaries were youths and were being supported through basic and secondary education.  Hundreds had also received support packages towards tertiary education and skill training.

A total of 4,121 youths from 14 communities within the Tongu Districts were feeding off the programme.  The NGO has a 'Child Survival' initiative that supported pregnant women and babies under one year.

The celebration at Mafi Adidome featured cultural and drama display, with about 70 beneficiaries receiving prizes for good conduct and academic performance.