October 6, 2021
By: MOHAMED M. SESAY
In her presentation of their 2022 fiscal year budget to the Ministry of Finance, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Youth Affairs Mariatu Brownie said they will provide one thousand commercial motor bikes to youth as part of their key part of their key deliverables in 2022.
She also presented 7.4 billion Leones as their annual budget for the year 2022.
Mariatu Brownie highlighted their key deliverables and achievement for the year 2020 noting that, the Ministry established the car wash center project by constructing sixteen car wash centers in sixteen districts. She also referenced the youth in entrepreneurship project, youth in commercial transportation project which aim to target 1,300 youths across the country, youth in agriculture project, establishment of rice cultivation project at chiefdoms level and council and the youth in fisheries project.
Madam Mariatu Brownie also highlighted the another key deliverable and achievements made in 2021 ranging from the construction of twenty-eight car wash centers across the country, developed a National Apprenticeship policy and strategy, support to youth in fisheries activities, support to chiefdom youth farms and support for adolescence sexual reproductive health programme.
She also highlighted the ongoing projects at the Ministry which are; support to youth in car wash, youth in fisheries, and support to youth in agriculture, support for adolescence sexual reproductive health programme for youth, institutional support for capability building, Development of National Apprenticeship Policy and Strategy, youth empowerment fund and social mobilization.
She disclosed that a projected cost for the aforementioned ongoing projects is twenty-four billion Leones, monies disbursed by the Ministry of Finance as of June 2021 is slightly over ten billion Leones and outstanding balance for the implementation of the project is around 13.6 billion Leones. She therefore, craved the indulgence of the Ministry of Finance to expedite payment of the outstanding balance so that they could finish those projects.
As part of their achievement for the year 2021, Madam Brownie furthered that they have employed one thousand four hundred youth in fisheries projects, engaged three hundred and fifty young people in the car wash projects, provided thirty-two motor bikes to District Youth Councils in order to monitor the free quality education, provided one hundred and twenty-six motor bikes to Chiefdom Youth Councils in order to promote agriculture in their respective districts, employed ten thousand youth in chiefdom youth farms, established youth entrepreneurship programme catering for three thousand youths among others.
In her 2022 budget presentation, Madam Brownie also highlighted their key deliverables for the fiscal year 2022 which include but not limited to: to engage in institutional support for capacity building for youth, campaign against youth violence and drug abuse, training and support to District Youth Councils and the Ministry staff in various disciplines, establishment of you empowerment fund and youth apprenticeship programmes, youth in agriculture project, establish another twenty-eight car wash centers, establish eight-four production centers with rice dryers , rice mill machines in fourteen agricultural districts, provides one thousand motor bikes to commercial bike riders among others.
“We will very happy as a Ministry if the Ministry of Finance could disburse our outstanding balance and also approve our 2022 budget”, she concluded.