A Staff Reporter
DIMAPUR, MARCH 15
The north east region’s armed conflict, mass agitations, and other forms of conflict have contributed to the neglect of the region to a large extent. This concern was raised by Dimapur’s Deputy Commissioner Kesonyü Yhome at the inaugural function of Exchange Northeast Youth NGO Summit organized by CAN Youth at Hotel Acacia Dimapur on Tuesday, March 15.
Delivering the keynote address, Yhome said that India’s northeast region which has a 45 crore population faces a big challenge in terms of providing basic education, healthcare and employment for the people even after over 6 decades of India’s independence. Wide disparities continue to be seen in the level of development among the northeast states, he said.
At this concern, the deputy commissioner also opined that the rich economic resources of the region have not been tapped owing to the lack of proper infrastructure. The northeast region is going through a flow of problems that have hampered growth over the years. This in turn, he said, has affected the people, Yhome, mentor of the summit said.
Concentrating on core issues of Nagaland such as unemployment and the problems in the education sector, Yhome remarked that unemployment was not a ‘shortage.’ Opportunities are available but because of the fact that the population seeking jobs does not have the required competence or are over-qualified to fit a particular job opportunity that might be available. The deputy commissioner opined that to respond to the need will be of paramount challenge to both the state governments as well the agencies outside the government.
Emphasizing on marketing and bridging the digital divide, Yhome called upon agencies to open up global markets and strike ‘a balance between bringing prosperity and preventing exploitation.’ To do this, he said, one can help the region gain fair access to global markets primarily via the internet.
Thus, the administrator stated, there is a need to develop models of business excellence and ethics by creating means to facilitate the vision of bridging the digital divide and entrepreneurship in the northeast region. He acknowledged that although the eight north eastern states ‘are going fast,’ the growth is not creating enough livelihood opportunities. To address this issue, Yhome said entrepreneurial ventures would be a way forward.
The deputy commissioner also said there was a ‘crying need’ to give due emphasis to women entrepreneurs in order to ensure a ‘gender balanced growth.’ To create such environments, he expressed the necessity to introduce entrepreneurship as an element of academics. He also remarked that the strengths of the region cannot be ignored.
The director of local initiative YouthNet, Hekani Jakhalu, also talked to the gathering. She emphasized on team work which she believed was crucial for any organization to be successful. Funding is an integral component for an organization to function which is also a challenge for any organization to start up, she said.
Jakhalu said that everything possessed a process one has to go through. Establishing, she added, is always the difficult phase for any organization. This phase can be overcome when one delivers the goods and build trust, she said. She encouraged organizations to ‘have fun with their job’ as they strive to make their lives better through their work.
