Understanding and reflecting on the role of youth associations: The case of Dessie Town, Ethiopia

The right of freedom of association and assemble are the prerequisites for youth to form their own association. Through the minimal attention of the government to promote and implement these rights remain great challenges for the forming of effective youth associations in Ethiopia. The awareness and capacity of youth to claim own their own rights and the structural problems they face in Ethiopian society are other causes of the failure to see strong youth associations. The general public does not recognize the role of youth associations and have therefore a low credibility. The paper examines in more detail how the youth and the community understand and reflect about the role of youth associations. It explores the history and the current youth associations. Although, in Ethiopia youth associations have played a significant role in shaping young people’s life, they have faced many problems and they further do not have their own place in the community structure. The findings indicate that youth associations do not regard them-selves as being talented in making change. Though young women are seeing better than young men in leading their associations, they do not have a sense of agency. The associations are often highly politicized and are often manipulated for political purposes by the government. Youth associations are therefore unable to play an advocacy role in order to promote the interest of youth, particularly with regard to their democratic and citizenship rights.