While addressing Ghana’s parliament today, President Obama took a moment to say something to young people, telling them that the future of their nations lie in their hands:
“You have the power to hold your leaders accountable, and to build institutions that serve the people. You can serve in your communities, and harness your energy and education to create new wealth and build new connections to the world. You can conquer disease, and end conflicts, and make change from the bottom up. You can do that.”
“But these things can only be done if all of you take responsibility for your future.”
For the young people who read this blog, I want to know, do you think your generation can do all of these things?
Comments (42)
Richard Yu
Location: Manila, Philippines
11 July 2009 at 22:01 EDT
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A very inspirational message which I will share with others may they be youth or still youthful in vision and action.
Sangha Pen
Location: Cambodia
11 July 2009 at 23:04 EDT
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I am very support to this valuable speech. It make young people around the world interested more about the future of their nation.
I also hope that United States will do more for youth capacity building such as education, training course, study tour for them to ahare view, experience and good relationship among youth in the world.
From: Sangha Pen
Spokesman of Nationalist Party (Former Nordom Ranariddh Party) and also head of youth council of the party.
Cambodia
frances yeboah
Location: GHANA
12 July 2009 at 12:51 EDT
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I THINK AFTER LISTING TO PRESIDENT OBAMA YESTERDAY HE REALLY MADE MY DAY.HE IS AN INSPIRATION TO AFRICAN YOUNTH . GOD BLESS OBAMA
Bademosi Adebyi
Location: Ibadan,Nigeria West Africa.
12 July 2009 at 01:22 EDT
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Mr President, Yes we can cos the future of africa lie in our hand as the young.We need nomore strongmen in africa cos africa are icon full of HERO in the heart of AFRICANS.“Africa doesn’t need strongmen, it needs strong institutions i love te statement mr President.
Will the youngs of africa are highly pround of you our dearie Father,brother you are great among the great “THE GREAT OBAMA. may you live long in white house and God protect you and your lovely angel and daugther.
Prince Bademosi Adebiyi J
chen jing
Location: china
12 July 2009 at 01:51 EDT
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right,everyone must take his responsibility for the future.Then we will have a bright world
anchal
Location: india
12 July 2009 at 01:56 EDT
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yes,we can do everything which we want to do but , we have have to concertrate on our spritual power , which we don’t know carefully.
ORAYE ST. FRANKLYN
Location: Gbaramatu, Niger Delta
12 July 2009 at 03:04 EDT
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Prior to the Obama-Ghana declaration, Nigerian youths have been somewhat disillusioned with the manner with which Nigeria is being governed especially as it relates with the ’sprinkling’ of votes during elections. But with that Speech, President Obama has set fires in the bones of young people renewing their passions for a better and prosperous continent.
Truly, President Obama cannot be more correct. It’s up to us young people to salvage crippling democracies like Nigeria’s and O Yes, we will!
Tejaswinee Burumdoyal
Location: Mauritius
12 July 2009 at 03:35 EDT
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We indeed have the power to make this the best generation in the history of mankind! if we all work together as one, we will eventually make success.
I believe that as young people, we are really idealistic-we have the aim to change the world and make it better place.
omar s. bamehriz
Location: jedah saudi arabia
12 July 2009 at 03:51 EDT
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yes young people can do all these things and the proof is what president Obama himself did till he reached the highest position on earth.
Yohannes Mebratu
Location: Ethiopia\Dessie town
12 July 2009 at 06:42 EDT
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job opportunities have to be created for young peoples in order those things to happen succeed,but this doesn`t mean that creativity skills have no value,but to just emphasize governments concern for organizing and coordinating young peoples efforts.
Ganza M.Bawa
Location: senegal
12 July 2009 at 06:51 EDT
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The youths of Africa needs a peaceful atmosphere to built their nations.To achieve these peace and a brigth future,we demand president Obama and the UN to urge all African leaders to respect their mandate.And stop them from amending their constitutions which brings war and rebellion in the continent.
Henry Padi
Location: South La Estate
12 July 2009 at 07:10 EDT
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YES!! we can do all of those mentioned by President Obama!
We can with God’s help.
yameogo marie noelie
Location: Ouagadougou, burkina faso
12 July 2009 at 10:02 EDT
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We should thank God for making Obama President of the United States of America. But we should also thank God for Democracy in the US. With Africa, Obama is getting to target. He is sensitizing both the old and young. Our Ancestors will also proctect him because they are proud of him. May God bless him and his family.
Sabine Stichler
Location: Germany
12 July 2009 at 11:06 EDT
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“Our Ancestors will also proctect him because they are proud of him.” This is a sentence you’d hardly ever read in Germany. I do appreciate this especially since I learned what in your country is self understood: that we live with our ancestors and that they are surrounding us in all that’s happening, be it with interest, joy or suffering.
What a blessing to finally have Obama come and change attitudes and misunderstanding. Thanks for your blog.
Sabine
Hope
Location: Spain & Arkansas
12 July 2009 at 14:57 EDT
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Do not thank god, thank the American voters - and all the lobbyists that, backed by interest groups such as the finance industry, got him elected.
Peter
Location: Nigeria
12 July 2009 at 13:18 EDT
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Yes! African youths can change tomorrow of Africa, if they are selfless, courageous and determined. They can bring about the change we need in Africa.
Paul Ogendi
Location: Nairobi
13 July 2009 at 02:15 EDT
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The ball is in our court. What Obama is calling for is not an individual’s effort, but a collective effort by the youth coupled with the right ideology for the future and strong commitment to the ideals that builds a great nation. It is our time to possess our land and make a difference in whatever small way. First, the battle must be won from the mind - change our thinking. Secondly, we must empower ourselves through education - read. Thirdly, influence or society through participation - civic participation. Fourthly, take over leadership, not only in politics, but also elsewhere in all our institutions - compete. The youth of Africa, the continent cries for your empathy, for your pride, and for your unqualified tender attention to heal its wounds.
God Bless.
Paul Ogendi
University of Nairobi
Dipcik
Location: Turkey
13 July 2009 at 02:59 EDT
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I Love you Obama.Hello from Turkey.
http://www.dipcik.com
Bizuhan
Location: ETHIOPIA
13 July 2009 at 05:32 EDT
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Mr President, thank You very much for the hope and faith U endured with us!! Yah, though it will never be easy, one day, through the makings of her sons and doughters african will be also mattured enough to enjoy the blessings of Democracy, Rull of law, Prosperity and Good governance as per your words!!
May God be with U and ur fams in all ur doings!!!
abena ampofo
Location: kumasi- Ghana
13 July 2009 at 06:36 EDT
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I believe we (young people) can reach heights our parents have not reached if we put our hearts to it. If we set realistic goals that can help add an element of change in the communities we find ourselves, we can do wonders. If we discipline ourselves, work hard and have positive attitudes, we can make a big difference. If we focus and press on despite the hardships, we can be a blessing to our country. Yes! I believe we can.
Israel Salami
Location: Accra Ghana
13 July 2009 at 07:40 EDT
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President Obama you are blessed in the name of God the father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit Amen.
Sir Obama i love all you said and i will work towards all of them trul Christ i will make it and tell people that it is your vision for me as a youth that brought me to where i will be in soonest.
Obama God bless you and your family.
Prince Israel Salami 1.
mimi
Location: uganda
13 July 2009 at 07:52 EDT
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yes because youths have fresh minds that can think straight in making themselves better people and the world.
And they also have the power to change situations with determination and hard work.
soita w george
Location: bungoma
13 July 2009 at 09:56 EDT
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Obama’s speeches have been inspiering,especialy to youths like me,what obout you outside there?MY FELLOW YOUTHS,we need to come out of covering and channel our efforts towards nation building.its our time so, you,wake up?
soita w george
Location: bungoma[KENYA]
13 July 2009 at 10:10 EDT
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Mr .Obama’s speeches have been inspiering,especialy to youths like me,what obout you outside there?there for,MY FELLOW YOUTHS,we need to come out of covering and channel our efforts towards nation building.its our time so, you,wake up?yes,TOGETHER WE CAN?
Tsimba RANDRIAMIARINTSOA
Location: Madagascar
15 July 2009 at 06:27 EDT
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If we want to be someone very important we have to be ourselves. What I mean is that. Before becoming President of US, Pdt Obama came from African country. May be US system has created him as he is actually but we should not forget that in his vein there is a blood of African poeple. So for me Youth in Africa could become very important than himself. Where are we? We are living in the middle of problems but in fact those who can upheave from the deepest hole can uplift the mind of a whole nation. Remember those who have received the Nobel Price of peace. So then you me, every one of us young should be the birth of a pleasant world.
darlington david
Location: from nigeria based in china.
14 July 2009 at 01:33 EDT
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i can only be like darlington david not as Mr Obama, i love that man and addore him i have read his book which i still long to read every now and then, The Audacity of Hope. we have work to do every youth regardless of where we come from, we are the world , we can heal the pains we bear long ago, we can rebuild and help our next genertations to come. i am too humble to say that am emotional uplifted when i read about his speechess calling on the youth to know that our future is in our hands, for me, i am working to change my world in my local and international way you can and we all can. some one said that we can win the war in our mind yes that is faith , lift ur brother regardless which country he comes from we are all one. she ideas for good, avoid old people using you for bad ambitions that will hurt the up coming generations please we are all call for duties. God bless the world at large. Mr OBAMA, i don’t know what to say but i know you have left a great word to key in , God loves you more and he brought you to show case to the world to view.
from darlington david , from Abia state Nigeria
somia metwaly
Location: egypt
14 July 2009 at 04:23 EDT
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yes, i belive any community’ population can do this. they can force polititions to be more accountable
Edmond Balika
Location: Accra, Ghana
14 July 2009 at 04:33 EDT
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Yes We Can. Prez. Obama’s word of advice to the youth can materialize if and only if we, the youth, go out of our comfort zones and challenge the status quo. The way i see the situations in most African countries, one could easily become overwhelmed just by comtemplating what needs to be done to move Africa out of its present predicament.
The bottom up approached suggested by Obama is certainly the way forward. Let’s tackle our problems by positively influencing our immediate surroundings - families & friends, communities, regions etc.
God Bless visionary African leaders and God Bless Prez. Obama.
Rajgor
Location: Mumbai, Maha, India, Asia.
14 July 2009 at 22:55 EDT
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I can see the swamy-viveka-anand in Obama. I love you.
calvince abel odhiambo
Location: migori,kenya
15 July 2009 at 02:27 EDT
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you always make me zealous for change.how i pray that young kenyans would shun tribalism,bribery and corruption.these vice slowly eats our strenght as apeople robbing us of our rigts as kenyans.i demand at these very moment of the pm-raila odinga and his excel.mwai kibaki to:
1.set deadlines for reforms.set proper dates.
2.do proper reconciliation and healing.
3.without fear face their supportes and demand accountability from them even if it wiil cause them their popularity.
be blessed mr. presidnt
Tsimba RANDRIAMIARINTSOA
Location: Madagascar
15 July 2009 at 06:02 EDT
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This question is too crucial for young poeple in African country. Before being old our elder have already lived the same life as the youth. They would recognize the needs of youngsters then. That would be the logical aspects of life. But in fact the reality is other. Every one says the nation is in the hand of young but once become adult every one do the same error as their elder. Where is then the lack? Do their parents have not the capicity to educate well their children? Young and parents is a vicious circle but the link up between them should be updated with evolution. Many have bad translation of evolution and we young has become recipient of that misunderstanding. So in which issue we could become the birth of good future. First I think we should start to analyse the behavior of our elder, not in the sens of criticizing but in finding how would I react intelligently without disturbing the system of life of every one. We should bake retoration if we find the main problem of our nation. Because this era where we live needs the mean creativity of every one.
KYELEM DAVID
Location: TAKORADI / GHANA
15 July 2009 at 08:50 EDT
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Mr President, thank You very much your prophecy will come true for the well being of all humanity.
God bless you and your family.
TOE Souleymane
Location: Roumanie
15 July 2009 at 09:38 EDT
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Je voudrais saisir cette occasion pour remercier le Président OBAMA pour son discours historique à Accra au Ghana. En tant que jeune africain, je considère ce discours comme un cri de guerre pour sortir l’Afrique et les africains de la pauvrété. Je voudrais ici et maintenant m’engager à porter haut ce message d’accra afin que la jeunesse africaine s’organise et prenne en main son destin. Nous devons travailler comme l’a si bien dit le Président OBAMA à amener nos dirigeants à avoir un comportement responsable dans la gestion de la chose publique, dans la lutte contre la corruption afin aussi que l’espoir renaisse et que les africains partout soient aptent à se prendre en charge…
TOE Souleymane
Location: Roumanie
15 July 2009 at 09:43 EDT
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Je lance cette fois-ci l’idée de la création d’une association africaine pour la vulgarisation de l’apel historique du Président OBAMA à Accra. Que tous ceux qui sont intéressés me contact au : souleymane37@hotmail.com
L’Afrique, c’est sa jeunesse et si nous déterminés, nous pouvons influer positivement sur le cours de l’histoire. Merci
THOMAS SIAW
Location: ACCRA
15 July 2009 at 13:56 EDT
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Thanks mr. president Obama for such a wonderful speech.You stated in your speech”I AM SPEAKING TO THE YOUNG PEOPLE TO HOLD YOUR LEADERS ACCOUNTABLE AND BUILD INSTITUTIONS TO SERVE OUR PEOPLE”. Please hi excellency, our leader we’ve voted to power are mostly corrupt and unpardonable. We are been jobless and nothing is been done.We hope in our selves but we seems nothing and meaningless before our cherished leader.WHAT DO WE DO PLEASE?
My fiancee is in new jersey and i want to take these oportunity to ask for these favour…that i want to visit her for the first ti and i need you help.
God bless you more and aboundantly.
THOMAS SIAW
ACCRA-GHANA
Shahzad Aryobee
Location: Kabul, Afghanistan
16 July 2009 at 04:43 EDT
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Dear Mr. Ethan Glick,
Mr. President Obama is creating new hope for youths; it is really very inspiral message. Thanks for his message and for such a wonderful speech. First time I got this unique message in his speech”I AM SPEAKING TO THE YOUNG PEOPLE TO HOLD YOUR LEADERS ACCOUNTABLE AND BUILD INSTITUTIONS TO SERVE OUR PEOPLE”.
As an Executive Director for the Zazi Youth Educational and Cultural Council (ZYECC), can say that this is message is very positive for us.
I am leading a youth council ZYECC new established in 2007 registered with Ministry of Justice, and recognized by the directorate of youth in the Ministry of Information and Culture in Afghanistan.
ZYECC is working for Loya Paktia Youths development, advocating for change and connecting youth to knowledge, experience, and resources to help them build a better life. ZYECC is a public, nongovernmental and non-political, civil society council with a functioning board of directors and a competent management team. It consists of twenty one professional regular staff with 150 registered members. The council’s central office is located in Afghanistan’s capital, Kabul will open provincial and district offices throughout the country in the near future. The council is created, established, and managed by educated and professional youth from Paktia province.
Taiwo A. OLAIYA
Location: Ile-Ife, Nigeria
16 July 2009 at 05:56 EDT
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This road is strikingly familiar. I think president Obama’s speeches also bordered on the general rhetorics we are used to in Africa. Those who rig elections and plunder state wealth care less about powerful speeches. We obviously need more than that to escape the scourge of mis-rule and underdevelopment currently ravaging Africa. I think globalisation should include ensuring that in all the states that make up the global village, the true winners of elections are declared and sworn in as the ruler. Otherwise, President Obama may have come to Ghana, and delivered those powerful messages, in vain. (sorry if I am disrespectful)
Audrey Koumba
Location: London UK
16 July 2009 at 15:36 EDT
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Dear Mr President,
I just want to thank you for your speech today in Ghana. It was very powerful as usual and it covered everything I was hoping to hear you say. I didn’t hear you say those words actually but I registered to receive the highlights on my mobile phone. I was so excited when reading them as they came that I started dancing in my kitchen.
Mr President you are the change African people have been waiting for. You speak the truth “there is no reason why African cannot be self sufficient ” you said at the G8 summit in Italy, because of you African leaders were invited to this summit and were actually seen on mainstream medias (which never happened before).
In Moscow you said that “the time when a handful of state leaders would decide the fate of the world has passed”. How powerful is that. This is the kind of leadership the world needs.
For me the strongest point of your speech were as follows:
1 - “The 21st century will be shaped by what happens not just in Rome, or Moscow or Washington, but by what happens in Accra as well.”
2- “Just as it is important to emerge from the control of another nation, it is even more important to build one’s own”
3- “Government that respect the will of their own people are more prosperous, more stable, and more successful than governments that do not”
4- “With better governance I have no doubt that Africa holds the promise of a broader base for prosperity”
5-”Africa doesn’t need strongmen, it needs strong institutions”
I hope that leaders around the world watched, heard or read your speech. Africa indeed needs strong institutions, institutions that can stand up against corruption or intimidation.
Mr President, I trust you unconditionally and I can see that the world is changing. You didn’t wait 4 years to bring change; you did it from the beginning both at home and around the world just as people like me who believed in you before you announced that you were a candidate for the Presidential elections knew you were going to do it.
You are speaking the language that real people from Washington to Paris, Rome, Moscow and Accra want to hear, the truth. The truth that things are not good at the moment and have been getting bad for the past 8 years, but change can happen if we believe in our own ability to help bring it.
God Bless Barack Obama.
Paul Faxon
Location: Srilanka
17 July 2009 at 07:25 EDT
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President words very valuable to younger generation & get ready for archieved it…….thanks president
Obed Sarpong
Location: Accra, Ghana
21 July 2009 at 11:13 EDT
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President Obama’s admonishment to the youth isn’t a new call. In Africa, the phrase “the youth are the future leaders” is common word.
I think the challenge is the right direction and the youth can live up to expectation.
It isn’t a question of whether the youth can live up to it, but how much power the older generation is willing to relinquish to us. Much as we must prove ourselves, the other side has a lot to offer. And this is particular of Africa.
If this doesn’t happen, it’ll all be another cliche in the right direction
min bahadur bishwokarma
Location: nepal
22 July 2009 at 12:21 EDT
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hi sir
thanx for elected as the great post of americas president,I am very happy by your chalenges
min bahadur Bk
from nepal
Olarinde Olufemi
Location: Ibadan oyostate nigeria
25 July 2009 at 09:26 EDT
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Thank you Obama for this encouragement for we youths,the future of every community depend mostly on youth that fear God,knows their rights and are optimistics about the future not allowing themselves to be miss directed by some useless elders in the communities[politician].Sir u are the youth,the world president;CONGRATULATIONS’ we expect much from you
THANKS