A new office to serve youths in Ba, Tavua and Rakiraki was today opened by Minister for Employment, Productivity, Industrial Relations & Youth and Sports Honourable Parveen Kumar Bala in Ba.
The new office is the result of a decision to reshape the overall service delivery of the Ministry and will ensure the Ministry engages more directly with young Fijians in its area of operation.
Speaking to guests during the opening, Minister Bala said the Ministry similarly is opening a chain of new offices in strategic locations around Fiji to be operational in the coming days.
“We have also opened offices in Nausori and Valelevu, with branches in Nadi and Sigatoka to be operational in the coming days. These offices will immediately expand our reach to young Fijians wherever they reside, and in the long term, increase our engagement and the Ministry’s reach to our clients – the youths of Fiji,” Minister Bala said.
“We are also recruiting 29 Assistant Youth Officers so this is certainly a good start to our calendar year.”
Minister Bala further said that there is no single, central hub for Fiji’s young people, hence the Ministry’s decentralisation efforts will prove critical to holistically engage all of our young people.
The Minister added that there has been talks of “reaching the unreached” with no definite demarcation of who the unreached really are.
“This is the very reason I, in my capacity as Minister for Youth and Sports, have embarked on this undertaking to decentralise our youth services to ensure an all-inclusive engagement with our young people,” Hon Bala said.
“It is no secret that young people are the backbone of any nation –– and that is particularly the case here in Fiji. We’ll often find that our young people are our most passionate social advocates, and most ambitious players when it comes to our national economic development.”
Hon. Bala further explained that youths are a vital segment of our society, and with it comes numerous challenges to address –– from preparing them for leadership, developing critical thinking, creativity and innovation, and uplifting our vulnerable youth populations, those living with disabilities and the marginalised.
“It is not only a challenge for government, but for society as a whole, and for all of us as individuals and recognising this, we are working to tackle challenges facing our youth head-on,” he said.
The minister also acknowledged the tremendous support of the A Jan group of companies for providing the land and building the new office.
“This assistance by the management of the company is testament to their support for the youths of Ba,” he said “It boosts our efforts and we are grateful to the company for their invaluable support.”
Meanwhile 21 year old Jasneel Rao of Varadoli, Ba is all praises for the new office.
“This office will provide a great opportunity for the youths of Ba in terms of personal development through the ministry’s empowerment programmes,” he said, “This is a great move by government as youths are the future of Fiji.”
For Samuela Kavanaqesa, the new office spells the end of travel to Lautoka as it has addressed the issue of accessibility for Ba youths.
“We can now reach out easily to the Youth Officers as they are located right here in Ba. For years we travel to Lautoka and that draws a lot of traveling expenses. We are glad that this office has opened and we thank the Ministry for the initiative,” said the 33 year old Nasolo native.