The Ethiopian National Youth Policy

The concept of “youth” has been used since early times. However, there is no standard or universally accepted definition of youth, since the different culture has a different perception. Early scholars and philosophers considered youth as a concept similar to “early childhood”. Later concepts saw it as analogous to adolescences (Hoult, 1997). Today, there is a general tendency to see youth as a stage between late adolescence and early adulthood. The concept “youth” is both a product of biological maturation and social definition (Encyclopedic dictionary of sociology, 1986).

According to the definition of the United Nations, youth constitute the population between 14-24 years of age. As a socio-cultural phenomenon, it is defined as a stage in which young people are confronted with some models of the major roles that they as supposed to emulate in adult life and with the major symbols and values of their culture and community (Eisenstadt, 1972).

The Ethiopian national youth policy indicated that various communities and cultures in the country maintain different views and outlooks about youth depending on the level of their social and economic development. It indicated the absence of a single definition for the concept youth and considered “youth” as a young person whose age bracket ranges between the end of childhood and the beginning of adulthood. Thus, it associates the definition of youth with biological growth, physical development and maturity and undergoing physical and psychological changes as a manifestation of youth age (MoYSC, 2004).

Moreover, the policy document indicated that different governmental organizations, NGOs, and civil associations in Ethiopia and other countries adopt and use various age ranges for the ...

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...andle their issues includes individuals, organizations, and institutions, especially at the community level that provide active support for the growing capacity of young people.

Horwitz and John (2012) described youth development as an approach that both institutions and programs take when working with youth and a set of characteristics that youth might embody. Further Horwitz and John agreed for the need of development in a range of skills and competencies that youth need to become healthy and successful adults

According to the youth development framework, youth development is an approach to working with young people that encompasses four things: it is designed to meet the developmental needs of youth, builds on their assets and potential, views young people as resources, and builds partnerships with youth to create positive, sustaining change (Mack, 2006).