The First Lady, Mrs Ernestina Naadu Mills has exhorted the country’s youth to eschew tribalistic tendencies as that could lead to retrogression in the development of the nation.

She said the nation needed to harness all its resources and direct them towards a systematic national agenda.

Mrs Naadu Mills was speaking at the 57th Speech and Prize Giving Day of the St. Thomas Aquinas Senior High School in Accra.

“The youth must be disciplined, respect the constitutional provisions and avoid the use of violence in solving problems,” she stated.

The first lady emphasized the need for young people in the country to be empowered with adequate knowledge and skills.

That, she said would help them channel their energies and talents into productive areas and reduce the low productivity that has bedeviled the country for ages.

Ghana’s desire to attain a middle income status in the not too distant future will remain a mirage if the productive capacity of the youth is not enhanced, she asserted.

Mrs Naadu Mills encouraged the youth to endeavour to live healthy lifestyles devoid of drugs and other substance abuses.

She counseled the students not to neglect the spiritual side of the lives stressing that academic development goes hand-in-hand with spiritual development.