Young people must embrace servant leadership - Speakers at UGDEJCR summit

The University of Ghana Distance Education Junior Common Room (UGDEJCR) has launched its maiden Leadership Summit to inspire young people to embrace responsible, ethical and service-oriented leadership.

The summit, held over the weekend, brought together student leaders, youth advocates, entrepreneurs and other prominent personalities to discuss the importance of effective leadership and its role in building a peaceful and successful society.

The event was attended by Vice President of UGDEJCR, Faris Abdul-Raheem Mushud; President of UGDEJCR, Diana Nartey; Speaker of the General Assembly, Isaac Richard Boakye; National President of the Graduate Students Association of Ghana (GRASAG), Richard Class-Peters; and entrepreneur and humanitarian Prisca Abah.

Also present were Richmond Larbi Ofori, President of the Senior Common Room (SCR), University of Ghana; Saddik Salis Sowah, President of the Law Students Association, Zenith University Faculty of Law; and former UGDEJCR presidents Solomon Avorka and Seth Asare.

Other attendees included Ishmeal Donkoh, former Vice-President of HURMSA; Edem Dzata Elisha, Financial Secretary of UGDEJCR; and poet Skid.

Speaking at the summit, Saddik Salis Sowah, President of the Law Students Association at the Zenith University Faculty of Law and former Speaker of the University of Ghana Distance Education Students’ Representative Council (SRC), now the Junior Common Room (JCR), said leadership should be viewed as a responsibility to serve rather than an opportunity to gain prestige.

He said effective leadership was not merely about being resourceful but about inspiring, guiding and serving others with honesty, responsibility, democratic values, respect and humility.

According to him, true leadership begins with character, requiring leaders to be trustworthy, disciplined and willing to make decisions that advance the interests of the people they serve.

He cautioned young people aspiring to leadership positions against becoming consumed by power, urging them to prioritise the needs and welfare of the people.

Sowah stressed that putting the interests of the people first remained the essence of true leadership.

Also speaking, Richard Class-Peters said leadership came with significant responsibility and should ultimately be measured by the positive impact a leader made in the lives of the people.

He urged leaders to remain loyal to those they served, demonstrate competence and avoid being carried away by the prestige associated with leadership positions.

He encouraged young leaders to remain level-headed, approachable and people-centred, rather than focusing solely on politics.

According to him, being resourceful alone did not make someone an effective leader, as leadership also required charisma, passion and a genuine commitment to creating positive change.

For her part, entrepreneur and humanitarian Prisca Abah emphasised the importance of combining formal education with practical skills to prepare young people for leadership and professional success.

She described leadership as a continuous journey of learning, discipline and self-development and encouraged young people to treat everyone they encountered with respect.

Abah noted that the journey to success was rarely smooth and often involved challenges and setbacks.

She therefore urged participants to remain resilient, recover from setbacks, hold their heads high and continue striving to make the best of every situation.

The Leadership Summit provided a platform for young people to reflect on the values, skills and mindset required for effective leadership.

Through the contributions of the speakers, participants were encouraged to embrace servant leadership, uphold integrity and commit themselves to making meaningful contributions to their communities and the development of Ghana.

The organisers said the summit formed part of efforts to strengthen leadership capacity among young people and encourage them to recognise that they could contribute to society’s development today rather than wait until tomorrow to assume leadership roles.