Members of Parliament have commemorated Youth Day in the National Council of Provinces (NCOP), under the theme: Advancing the Heroic Legacy of the 1976 Generation and the Great Legacy of Nelson Mandela and Albertina Sisulu.
Most speakers focused on education as a means to empower the youth. Youth unemployment stands at 38%. The Minister in the Presidency, Responsible for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, says in celebrating Youth Day, law and policy makers should also reflect on their own responsibilities towards uplifting the youth.
“We can say we’ve restored the dignity of people and in particular of youth, but not in full, because there is no dignity in poverty and no dignity in unemployment.”
She added that government is continuously trying to identify areas for job creation and economic development. “The oceans economy is one area young people should tap into. Another sector is tourism. SA is one of the most beautiful countries; we need to grow it as much as we can because, it has great potential for job creation.”
The Democratic Alliance (DA) has called for the re-establishment of the education and training system. “We should be outraged, that The Economist ranked us among the worst systems in the world, 75 out of 76. Those aged 15 – 34, 60% of the population are not participating in the economy,” says DA’s Bronwynn Engelrecht.
Inkatha Freedom Party Member of Parliament, Mntomuhle Khawula emphasised that there is only one way to empower the youth, that is through education.
“The IFP always valued education as one of the tools to utilise, for youth to get total liberation; as a result, our motto was education for liberation.”
The Economic Freedom Fighters Member of Parliament, Brenda Mathevula also reiterated the importance of education.
“Education has been one of the few things black South Africans have had available to uplift themselves and their families but it has always come at the financial cost that many cannot afford. This has excluded many of our young people from education all together.”
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