The NYS study tour to Kenya and Ghana is to inform the review of the 2016 NYS Act, as proclaimed by President Julius Maada Bio in his maiden address to Parliament on 10th May 2018.

The choice of Kenya and Ghana is meant to obtain best practices from the youth services of both countries and to further obtain all technical information and literature that would enhance the implementation of the scheme in Sierra Leone.

Minister Kallon said the New Direction believes in effective institutional reforms that will resonate with youth empowerment and national development. According to him, this will help the government to implement programmes and projects in line with its national agenda.

“The study tour is important and timely,” said Minister Kallon, “it will help us to obtain best practices and lessons from other countries ahead of the review process.”

Onanah Jalloh, Deputy Executive Director of the NYS said they are on track and working assiduously to ensure that the NYS become an envy in the subregion. He said since inception, the NYS was dormant but they have injected a “new blood” into the scheme to achieve President Bio’s ambitious vision for the youth.

“We were able to recruit the first batch of graduate corps and today they have been deployed across the country,” said Director Jalloh. He went on to state that “after the tour we would certainly review the Act which is why we travelled with the Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Youth Affairs to demonstrate seriousness.”