EENHANA – As a Namibian youth, you could be the newest minister on the radar. And we are not talking about just a national cabinet post, but a regional seat. The Junior Tourism Minister post is up for grabs and it could be yours as long as you are a youth in the SADC region. All you need to do is write the most impressive essay on how the youths can play a meaningful role in tourism development in the region.
This is the first ever Youth in Tourism essay competition that is being run by the Regional Tourism Organisation of Southern Africa (Retosa) and so you have the chance to be the first minister. The competition is open to all primary and secondary schools in Southern Africa. “The essay competition is targeted at scholars between the ages of 12 and 17 years. They are a critical component in the sustainable development of tourism in Southern Africa, and this is also in order to create a regional platform for purposes of mainstreaming scholars in tourism programmes,” says Retosa in a statement.
In total, 150 schools from the SADC region are expected to participate in the inaugural competition. Make sure that yours is one of them. The Regional Youth and Tourism Essay competition will be running under the theme Turning Southern Africa into a Competitive and Green Tourism Destination. The deadline for submitting the essays is November 30, 2013. The prize for being the best is awesome. Two winners will be crowned Junior Tourism Minister for one year. The two Junior Ministers and their teachers will be sponsored to the Regional Youth in Tourism Arts Festival and Conference to be held in Lilongwe, Malawi from December 12-13, 2013. Retosa is the tourism growth and development in Southern Africa. Retosa’s member states are mainly those from the SADC region which are Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
As a Namibian youth, this is a big chance to participate and input into the regional agenda on tourism development in Southern Africa with specific focus on how the youths can play a meaningful role in tourism in the region.
By Clemence Tashaya