The Centre for Social Transformation and Human Development (CHDST) in collaboration with the Nigeria Network and Campaign for Peace Education has reiterated its readiness to organise  the first Independent Talking Across Generations on Education (iTAGe) event in Africa.
This was contained in a statement jointly signed by the organisers, Dr Polycarp Henetu and  Collins Imoh and made available to newsmen in Port Harcourt at the weekend.
According to the statement,  the  event would  be in  partnership with UNESCO Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development (MGIEP). 
It also hinted that the  high profile-event will hold on September 4,  2021 in Port Harcourt  and added that participants will be drawn across the country.
It further revealed that  emphasis would be made  on youth engaging with senior policy makers on “Deepening a Culture of Peace and Democracy through Education’,  over the years, on TAGe events held in India, USA, and Canada.
Defining its nature and purpose, it stated that   MGIEP focuses more on achieving the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4.7 towards education to foster peaceful and sustainable societies by developing programmes and products that promote social and emotional learning, innovate digital pedagogies and empower the youth.
About Talking Across Generations on Education (TAGe) initiative, it said that it was  a youth-driven intergenerational dialogue on education,  premised on the centrality of the transformative nature of dialogue.
“The world is home to more than 1.8 billion young people. More often than not, these young people are pushed to the periphery of the policy making process in the areas of education, peace, sustainability and global citizenship; they are not viewed as key stakeholders. MGIEP believes that any strategy aimed at the youth cannot be successful without their voice being heard by policy makers.
“Therefore, effective engagement of Nigerian youth should include incorporating perspectives from young people into each component of policy making, education opportunities, programme planning and other vital national/international decision-making avenues. This lies at the core of the Talking Across Generations on Education project”, it said.
 In addition, it hinted that the dialogue in Port Harcourt will be expected to achieve these objectives by facilitating an unrestrained dialogue between young people interested in the field of education together with experienced and high-level senior decision makers for an intergenerational dialogue on education.

By: King Onunwor