Steven Klukowski

If the youth want to explore their full potential and to optimally use their abilities to be successful in empowering and sustaining themselves, they should approach the process with the correct mindset, said //Kharas regional governor Aletha Frederick. 
This has been her point of view during an information-sharing meeting on youth development in the //Kharas region that recently took place in Keetmanshoop. 

The meeting aimed at concentrating specifically on Keetmanshoop youth.
“The information shared here today should be realistic and truthful since we need to strategise on it for the next five years in terms of youth development,” she informed the youths.

Frederick further said being part of the youth before, she knows their exact needs and aspirations. “I will definitely heed to your calls; it is our (youth) time now and we should, therefore, work hard towards changing our mindset,” the governor emphasised. 
She also advised the group not to assume what works for one person will necessarily work for another. In terms of the Social Entrepreneurship Development Programme, //Kharas regional youth development supervisor Annelien van Wyk at the same event said the Ministry of Sport, Youth and National Service are providing business loans ranging between N$2 000 and N$10 0000 to the youth who approached them with innovative, workable business proposals.

 “If our office identified their ideas to be self-sustainable, we will then give them entrepreneurial training and assist them financially, initially with a lower amount which will increase with the progress they made,” she elaborated.
Van Wyk also said those young people in the age group 18 to 35 years and are already in business also qualify under the program should they aspire to expand on it. 

Another development program in place, according to the supervisor, is computer literacy for youth. “The aim of this initiative is to provide a three-month training in basic computer skills to them and also giving them certificates of attendance for future employment opportunities,” said Van Wyk. She added that through this, these youngsters are then empowered to type documents, as some of them are computer illiterate.  
It was explained during the meeting that the youth development division’s core functions, amongst others, include skills development, offering of youth empowerment programmes, developing and managing a youth database system and supporting and capacitating regional structures in place. 
– sklukowski@nepc.com.na