MOTIVATING YOUTH FOR PEACE-BUILDING AMID PANDEMIC: LGU, 53IB Initiate Provincial-Wide Youth Leadership Summit (YLS) in Zamboanga del Sur
The Philippine Army’s 53rd Infantry “MATAPAT” Battalion (53IB) in partnership with the Provincial Local Government Unit conducted the planning for the upcoming Provincial Youth Leadership Summit (YLS) and Facilitators Training on April 1, 2021 at 53IB Headquarters Camp David Sabido, Guipos, Zamboanga del Sur (ZDS).
The main goal of this is to advocate good citizenship and enhance leadership strengths among the youths in Zamboanga del Sur while ensuring an intact sense of identity and wellbeing amid pandemic with the theme: “Empower the Digital Youth: Cultivate Servant-Leadership and Signature Strengths Toward a Peaceful and Progressive Zamboanga del Sur.”
The YLS 2021 is strategically conceptualized to:
1. foster servant-leadership perspective in training the young leaders;
2. grow the digital young leaders’ intellectual, emotional, social, spiritual intelligence which are basic essentials in nation-building;
3. facilitate awareness of youth vulnerabilities (anxiety, depression, identity confusion, inferiority, lack of self-awareness, autonomy, love and security, self-compassion, and among others) that could be used as a tactical advantage in CPP-NPA-NDF recruitment;
4. educate the youth on the psychology of terrorism and the digital/modern way of terrorist recruitment;
5. identify their signature strengths or potentials as precursors to higher wellbeing leading to productivity, cooperation, teamwork, belongingness, self-confidence, grit, and positive leadership;
6. inculcate the young people’s roles and responsibilities in supporting the government’s whole of nation approach in countering insurgencies;
7. have consciousness on the importance of advocating environmental protection and preservation in maintaining a balance of the natural environment;
8. be reminded about the love of God, love toward the family (basic unit of the society), love of the country, and service to humanity,
9. cultivate the spirit of volunteerism and capacitate young leaders to craft their own developmental projects or advocacy campaigns and mindfully behave as healthy influencers in society.
The YLS 2021 is also supported by the 1st Congressional District of ZDS, 1st Infantry “TABAK” Division, 102nd Infantry “IGSOON” Brigade, 1st Civil Military Operations Battalion (1st CMO BN), 547th Engineer Battalion (547TH EB), 9th Regional Community Defense Group (9RCDG), 1st Field Artillery Battalion, (1FAB), 1st Division Training School, (1DTS), Kuta Caesar Sang-an Station Hospital (KCSSH), Headquarters Headquarters Service Battalion ( HHSBn), Philippine National Police ZDS Provincial Police Office, and government agencies including National Youth Commission, Department of Interior and Local Government, Office of Civil Defense, Department of Education, and Department of Health.
The targeted schedule of the YLS activities will start on April 9, 2021, with more than 4,000 youth participants from all Barangays in Zamboanga del Sur.
