What I present here is a personal narrative of my contribution to the process of youth participation in community and national policy making processes based on experiences as a resident of Mzilikazi suburb in Bulawayo, student and youth leader. As a prelude to my submission I wish to point out that if young people are to contribute effectively to national policy making they have to be at the forefront of all socio-economic and political processes at community level.
Youth social entrepreneurship at community level, through the establishment of Youth Action Groups (YAGs) is the surest way of empowering youths to participate effectively in community and national policy making processes in Zimbabwe. YAGs will enable the following processes to be active;
1) Increased youth participation in electoral processes. One way of contributing to local and national policy making processes is through participating in local and national government elections to elect leaders and political institutions that espouse the wishes and aspirations of the youth. The greatest threat to democracy is apathy, without popular participation there is no democracy.
2) YAGs will convene community meetings, events and public lectures in their communities. Policymakers at local and national level should periodically visit meetings so that they can be in a position to take submissions made at these meetings to appropriate to policy making institutions for consideration.
3) YAGs will serve as sources of identifying potential youth (among members of YAGs who are of school going age) and senior parliamentarians and will also be consultative centers for youth and senior parliamentarians.
4) YAGs shall be based at community youth centers and information resource centres. Youth centres and information resource centres must be equipped with new information and communications technologies (NICTs). NICTs offer great opportunities for youth participation in governance and civic issues through blogging, podcasting and internet connectivity.
5) YAGs will also be active in tackling other issues affecting modern day communities such as HIV and Aids, drug abuse, illicit sex among the youth, hygiene and sanitation through aspects such as theatre for development and health communication campaigns.
In conclusion, it can thus be said that young people in Mzilikazi and Makokoba face so many challenges, which include, HIV and Aids, drug and alcohol abuse, illicit sex, lack of opportunities amongst others. YAGs are the sure way of empowering these young people with life skills to ensure that they are emancipated.
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Young people in townships need to do something about their situation and the solution should come from them. I guess this proposal of YAGs is an ideal platform for such experimentations. We lose nothing by experimenting, anyway!
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