By Elijah Ngurare As I was driving through the northern regions this past Saturday on my way to attend the Omagongo Cultural Festival, I saw many young people helping their elders in cultivating the fields. Seeing many of them attending the cultural festival in large numbers also impressed me tremendously. It was a moment of nostalgia for my own childhood where and when culture and tradition defined our existence. I was therefore not only impressed by the hard work of the youth but also their devotion to our cultural norms and traditions that are displayed at cultural events such as Omagongo Festival. I have seen this ‘youthful’ resolve manifesting itself in all language groups of our country from Hoachanas to Okangwati and in all the constituencies, villages, settlements, towns and cities all across the Republic of Namibia. There is thus a scoop of hope that can be harvested from this experience. This is not to say that there are no challenges facing the youth of our country. Indeed, our Namibian youth from diverse socio-economic and cultural backgrounds are not only the beacon of hope for the future of our country but we must also recognise that their plight against poverty and unemployment is a scar on the collective conscience of our society. Our youth are in our homes; we see them in our villages, towns and cities. They are abundant in our schools and they are the ones we see on street corners seeking and pleading for a job. Clearly, that they are craving for a job is a sign of their determination to better their lives and thereby contribute to socio-economic development of our country. Unlike those of us who grew up listening to Brenda Fassie and Devera Ngwena almost exclusively, in recent years and thanks to independence many of our youth have become creative and ingenious in expressing their musical talents. The Born Free They have exceptionally placed themselves on the musical charts of our country. Some have experimented with BEE and succeeded, others can only wish and hope for a better tomorrow. In yesteryear, they were the cream at the frontline of the liberation struggle and oiling the machinery of defiance against the colonial regime. As indicated above, the youth of our country are also facing numerous challenges including poverty, HIV/Aids and unemployment. It is laudable however to note various aspects of progress and innovation that some youth of our country are spearheading such us job-creating activities to better their lives. I therefore argue in this article that the plight of the youth is manageable provided we, as a ruling party and the private sector, have the deliberate political and patriotic will to address their plight. The Promise Shortly after independence, in 1993, our Swapo Party Government formulated the first National Youth Policy which recognised that “young people are a critical and significant grouping within Namibia and their demographic composition and socio-economic conditions pose a unique challenge to those involved in implementing youth development programmes”. What constitutes “youth” is defined as those young men and women between the ages 16 to 30 years, while embracing children below 15 years. It is a group considered to be “a major under-utilised resource, with enormous potential to contribute to national development” which should indeed be empowered to effectively participate in the national development process. It is worthy pointing out here that the term “youth” is all-inclusive of all the demographical representation of our country from the Mafwe and Masubia to the Hereros and Mbanderus; from whites and blacks to all socio-cultural groups in our country. While the Youth Policy clearly sets out rights and obligations for the youth, it is imperative that the State and the private sector must advance youth employment creation through economic participation, education and in particular with a focus on rural youth development. Rightly so, in the 2004 Swapo Party Election Manifesto the youth are recognised as a “reserve bank of Namibia’s future leaders both in the public and private sectors”. The Manifesto goes further to regard this group “as a transmission belt of the nation’s vision and mission statements”. Owing to the unacceptably high rate of unemployment among the youth, urgent measures need to be put in place with a view to addressing the problem. The National Youth Service Scheme was established to provide a learning environment for the youth by involving them in the social and economic development of the country. Similarly the establishment of the National Youth Council is clearly in keeping with these expectations. It is true that we should not exclusively depend on our economy to produce jobs but we should ourselves also be architects of job creation. I do accept that many amongst the youth are truly working hard to be “creators” of jobs. However, regrettably it does not seems as though much support is rendered to them, for reasons very well known. The Young Women Christian Association (YWCA) as well as Young Men Christian Association (YMCA) and other such youth-centred organisations are such examples which require the support of Government and the Private Sector. Qualifications vs. Experience Our institutions of higher learning have produced graduates since independence. Some of them are employed in the public service and others in the private sector. Yet there are also others that are unemployed since their graduation. Could this be attributed to the much rehearsed lines: “they do not possess the required skills for the job market”? I disagree. There are positions in the public sector that are still occupied by holders of Std. 8 namely Grade 10. A student who has completed UNAM or Polytechnic from say Kalkfeld, Gibeon or Anamulenge when looking for a job even in his/her field of study is asked about the “years of experience”. In most cases this is done by those who got employed in those positions without requiring experience: who does not know that in 1990, most if not all, did not have experience for the positions they occupied? Or is it a case of climbing the ladder and pull it up on their feet when others need to ascend to the career path? It is not fair to generalise but I think there are people in our private and public sector who are doing this thereby increasing the plight of the youth of our country. Unity in Diversity It is commendable that in some Ministries/Offices/Agencies as well as in the private sector many have absorbed the youth in places of employment. However the challenge still remains. In some cases a perception exists that to be employed you must either be a family or a friend of the person who is doing the recruiting. I have also come across the perception that some of our youth from the Coloured, Baster, Nama and White communities appear to harbour the view that they have no hope whatsoever to get employment in the public sector. Nevertheless, we must agree that this perception of exclusion is wrong and if there is truth to it, let everything be done to practically correct it. Quite simply the challenges of unemployment and poverty affect all the youth irrespective of race, tribe or ancestral origin. Never mind that some white youth of our country exclude themselves from the mainstream society, even of Windhoek, many only know the road to Okahandja, speak less being knowledgeable about the villages of our country. In essence for our compatriots in the white community, tourists from Europe know Namibia more than white Namibians. It is imperative that they include themselves in the broad-based political structures of our country. This process ought to start now before Vision 2030 is upon us. Empower the youth to feed the nation The solution in this respect ought to be a structured job placement and internship programme by both private and public sectors where school-going youth are able to work and gain experience as well as earn something in the process. This should extend not only to major towns like Windhoek, Walvis Bay and Swakopmund but also to smaller towns and village councils and settlements like Aranos, Tsandi, Bukalo and Otjinene. That almost 17 years after independence this programme is not operational is deplorable. Agriculture presents another solution for addressing the plight of the youth. Our Swapo Party Government must make an intentional policy intervention geared towards food production. I was delighted to hear the line Minister indicating that plans are afoot to launch the Green Scheme. I do trust that the youth shall be at the forefront of these efforts. Of course every Cabinet Minister is keenly conscious about the plight of the youth and it’s for this reason that one is hopeful that a permanent solution to this issue is on the horizon. Also, anyone driving through our roads this time of the year can see that they need clearing and thereby reduce perpetual accidents on our national roads. The youth could be relied upon by the Ministry of Works and the parastatals therein to assist in this process and thereby able to earn a living during the rainy season. We should not be afraid to employ our youth as casual workers as part of the internship programme and we should not be unnecessarily bureaucratic on this matter. Another solution is the empowerment of Constituency Councillors who directly deal with day-to-day challenges facing our youth. I argue that these councillors together with traditional authorities are the ears and eyes of government at the grassroots level and have a responsibility towards empowering our people in rural areas. I think everyone in our government agrees that the rural areas should be availed with roads, schools, telecommunications, clinics, water supply, sanitation, electricity and all other amenities. To realise all this in a practical sense, I want to argue that we must empower Constituency Councillors and their respective Offices. The aspect of transport and communication must be a prerequisite in that regard instead of car allowances that they are getting at present, it may be necessary to reconsider this in order to avail them with a dedicated government vehicle. What is national about National Radio? I have mentioned earlier the musical talents possessed by our youth. While there is cognisance about the efforts and progress that NBC has made towards promoting the local music, I think we still have a long way to go. This is a sense I got after reading an article by Comrade John Walenga, who is an expert in the growing music industry. It may be necessary to mention that the word ‘national’ means that “national radio” must be a conduit of musical expression for all our people. National Radio is supposed to meaningfully unify all the elements of various language service stations. It is my submission that NBC must deliberately attempt to play 98% of local music instead of often acting like a marketing platform for South African musicians and others. I accept that we should be exposed to other music notably from the African Diaspora and others. It may also be necessary to appeal to NBC and others who are engaged in promoting Namibian music to go to all remote areas of our country where the talents are and assist to make those dreams become true. This done, it could also be a conduit of employment creation. I sincerely hope that the NBC and other private radio and television stations will heed this concern. Consciousness amongst the youth The political consciousness of our youth is of paramount importance, hence the need to support the revival of NANSO to be active at schools. Who does not know that in the so-called industrialised countries students are allowed to establish political consciousness at their schools? In Namibia we find a small clique of academics and politicians who are nurturing the failed theories of “taking politics out of learning institutions”. We are fortunate to have had illustrious leaders in Africa and particularly here in Namibia who stood firmly in defence of our inalienable rights – such respectable leaders as Hendrik Witbooi, Nehale lya Mpingana, Hosea Kutako, Mandume Ndemufayo, Theofilus Hamutumbangela, Hauwanga Kandjimi, Iipumbu yaTshilongo and many others including contemporaries like the Founding President and Father of the Namibian Nation, Dr Sam Nujoma, President Hifikepunye Pohamba and Herman Andima Toivo ya Toivo and many others all of whom continue to urge us to embrace the virtues of hard work, discipline, patriotism and pan-Africanism. Indeed our youth must be taught what President Nkwame Nkrumah once declared to “seek first the kingdom of politics and everything else shall be added unto ye”. After all, we are who we are today because of the political background we either were born in or raised in, therefore let us not deny the same to our youth. In summary, both our public and private institutions must be at the forefront of responding positively and practically to the needs of our youth by availing them job and training opportunities. For them to be true reserve bank of Namibia’s future leaders both in the public and private sectors, deliberate policy interventions must be made to inculcate amongst them the sense of patriotism for our unitary State. This can be achieved by allowing them access to political and ideological consciousness of our heroic liberation struggle and the bravery of the Namibian people who fought for the independence we now enjoy. On the job front, one practical way of empowering them is by job placement and internship, including mandatory participation in the National Youth Service programme. Equipped with the above, it is likely that the future of our Republic and the system of government we have established shall forever be in good hands for this generation and beyond.