The Ministry of Youths and Civic Education and the United Bank of Africa signed a convention that will ease the production and distribution of Biometric Youth Card. The convention was signed on Friday 11 December during a ceremony organized to this effect at the Yaoundé Hilton Hotel.
The convention signing ceremony presided by the Minister of Youth Affairs and Civic Education and the Deputy Managing Director of UBA Magueritte Fonkwen Atanga was attended by top ranking officials of MINJEC, UBA and partners to the Biometric Youth Card.
According to the convention established for a period of three years renewable, cover five specific domains ranging from the production to the distribution of the Biometric Youth Card passing through the mobilization of potential partners, support to maintenance of production equipments and the production of sensitization tool around the Card as well as the training of the personnel of MINJEC on the use and management of the Biometric Youth Card.
The responsibility of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Civic Education in the convention include the elaboration of the training module related to the production and optimal distribution of the Card, the mobilization of youth towards the registration and obtention of the card, and also put at the disposal of UBA modalities of access to the network of partners of the Biometric Youth Card ecosystem, the digital library of the Card as well as the necessary information concerning the identification of each demander of the card and finally the installation of information point on the card in the 434 Multipurpose Youth Empowerment Centres
The United Bank of Africa through the convention engages to put at the disposal of MINJEC in respect of the demands of youths, the Biometric Youth Card at reduced cost, to integrate banking functionalities that relates to the identity of the youth as well as nonfinancial services offer by other partners, grant facilities and preferential interest rates of its products to youths, holder of the card.
In other to better implement the convention and for reasons of cordination, boths parties have put in place a follow-up and Coordination unit which will elaborate an action plan and designate focal points.
Speaking during the ceremony the Mounouna Fotsou described the signing of the convention as the pre- accomplishment of the Special Youth Tri-annual Plan put in place by the government to accelerate the socio-economic insertion of youths in the society.
As such the Minister called on the youths take hold of the opportunities offer to them” It now belongs to you henceforth to be involve in the activities and opportunities offer to you and as such bring your contribution to the effective execution of actions previewed for you and by you in the National Development Strategy 2020-2030 that Cameroon has just adopted, as such your personal touch to its emergence”
He went further to invite the National Youth Council and youth leaders to take up their responsibilities and join the government to built a Cameroon strong and prosperous.
The biometric card for youth is a component of the Three-Year Special Youth Plan which was initiated by the Head of State in 2016. The Head of State announced the FCFA 102 billion package to span for three years in four sectors including Agriculture, digital economy, entrepreneurship and training.
The overall objective of the three-year programme is to enhance civic education, social and economic integration of young people by mobilising them, providing civic and entrepreneurial training, employment or setting them up in business as production and service units. The programme targets 1.5 million youth with 500 trained, mobilised and oriented towards tasks corresponding to their needs every year.
The card, which will be distributed to young Cameroonians registered at the National Youth Observatory, will offer the youths of all the ten regions of the country a wide range of social, economic and financial benefits and programmes devoted to contribute to their empowerment. These services are provided for by both public and civil society actors and development partners.
The Biometric Youth Card according official sources will enable young people to enjoy certain benefits such as health, social security, employment, transportation, and training services at reduced costs or even free of charge. Holders of the Youth Card will gradually benefit from facilities in various sectors as well as a wide range of opportunities negotiated with third party partners.
Some of the benefits according to the authorities of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Civic Education include: training in entrepreneurship and business management in National Youth Observatory in Multipurpose Youth Empowerment Centres and assistance with business formalities for young people registered with the National Youth Observatory (NYO), when settling them in businesses, with the support of the accredited Management Centre.
The Biometric Youth Card will also enable youths receive assistance in the development of business ideas and maturation of projects in business incubators as well as in the financing of social and economic integration, especially concerning paid jobs and self-employment for Youth Cardholders, through the National Youth Integration Fund (FONIJ) and other MINJEC programmes.
Another advantage to a Youth Card holder is preferential rates in university tuition with partner universities (for university students and any youth looking for training opportunities); access to holiday and pre-employment internships in partner companies and also discounts in thousands of businesses and stores that are part of the Youth Card ecosystem. Some of such discounts could also be in the domain of health, transport and mobile communication.
