Programme Director – Mr Sylvester Ndaba
Executive Director, SAB Corporate Affairs and Transformation – Dr Vincent Maphai
SAB Limited General Manager – Mr Greg Uys
Chairperson of the National Youth Development Agency – Mr Andile Lungisa
Head of Department – Dr Nkosinathi Sishi
Officials from the Department of Education
Chairpersons of SGBs
Principals
Teachers
Learners
Members of the media
Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen;
Let me take this opportunity to greet everyone present and express our appreciation that you were able to be to part of this launch.
It is a launch that has been necessitated by what we all see as decay at the very core of our social fabric. I say it is at the core of our social fabric because if young people – and in particular – learners involve themselves in binge-drinking, drug abuse, falling pregnant, it means the future of this country is bleak – and in fact – there is no future at all to talk about.
So in essence, with this launch we are declaring a war on alcohol abuse among learners and young people of KwaZulu-Natal and the country as a whole.
Therefore it gives me great pleasure to be part of this very important event – a partnership between the South African Breweries, the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA), the Department of Trade and Industry (DIT) as well as the Department of Education called “You Decide”. As the Department of Education in KwaZulu-Natal, we are very pleased to be involved in this campaign.
The dire consequences of alcohol abuse and substance abuse cannot be over-emphasised. In 2009, the Medical Research Council published a document titled Substance Abuse and the Young: Taking Action. The document revealed some very startling and disturbing statistics regarding young people, learners in particular, and substance and/or alcohol abuse.
It found the following:
- 49% of learners at high school level reported ever having drunk alcohol
- 30.51% having smoked cigarettes
- 12.8% ever having experimented with cannabis (dagga)
- 23% indicated that they had engaged in binge-drinking.
You will agree with me that these statistics are gravely disturbing – and this was the survey conducted prior to June 2009. The general thinking is that these statistics might very well have dramatically increased by now and if this survey were to be applied to the current situation.
The report further asserted that for all young people, alcohol abuse does not only carry with it health risks, but it can also be associated with serious and often extremely devastating social problems such as:
- Crime and violence – young people using alcohol are three times more likely to be involved in violent crimes.
- Risky sexual behaviour – young people who experiment with alcohol are far more likely to graduate and use stronger illegal drugs such as marijuana and cocaine.
- Mental and Physical Health Problems – the survey found that young people involved in substance abuse from early age demonstrate symptoms of depression, schizophrenia and various other psychiatric disorders.
- Scholastic Problems - learners beset with these problems are very much likely to have low academic aspirations and attainments but also this can be associated with learner-dropout.
There is also overwhelming evidence that suggests that people who begin drinking before the age of 15 are four times more likely to develop alcohol dependence than those who have their first drink at the age of 20 or older. Now, all of the above factors and more are a major cause for concern. We do need to stand up and do something about alcohol abuse among young people, particularly underage drinking. It is in our interest to ensure a brighter future for our children.
South Africa and KwaZulu-Natal, in particular, is grappling with a huge problem of HIV and AIDS. It is an undeniable fact that there are major linkages between alcohol abuse and irresponsible sexual behaviour which in turn often leads to HIV infections.
In other words, if we were to successfully curb alcohol abuse among young people that would have a meaningful contribution in reversing the devastating effects of HIV and Aids in this province. So you can see that this is not just a campaign but something that could deal with a number of social ills while helping young people to grow up to become responsible and productive citizens of this nation.
So we value this partnership with the NYDA because where we fail to meaningfully engage young people, the NYDA should be in a position to do so. We further wish to express our appreciation to the Department of Trade and Industry - its role in this quagmire is of utmost importance. We wish to call on the DTI to be a lot more vigilant when issuing business licenses to the Tavernier’s. It would benefit all of us if DTI were to do a thorough check on the proximity of a proposed tavern.
One of the major problems we are facing is of taverns that mushroom right at the gate of a school. This does not help the department in its fight against substance abuse. But of equal importance is the question of the distance that needs to exist between a place of learning and the nearest tavern. The current legislation as it stands, states that there should be at least 500 metres between a school and the nearest tavern.
We feel that this is not enough – it needs to be revisited. There is a bill currently that is dealing with this issue. And looking at the problems we face on a daily basis, I’m more than convinced that this distance needs to be extended. Of course the legislators will make a decision on this but we would need communities to assist us in ensuring that this becomes a reality.
In May 2011, the Department of Education in KwaZulu-Natal launched the My Life My Future! Campaign whose aim was to deal with the social ills in our communities. Today’s launch of the You Decide Campaign – we believe, will go a long way in not only complementing but also intensifying the campaign that was launched last year. Both campaigns not only speak to the young people, they also target teachers, communities and schools.
We have identified 152 schools where alcohol abuse is prevalent, in five of the twelve districts of this province. These are Umlazi, Pinetown, Ilembe, Uthungulu and Amajuba districts.
These schools will be visited by this campaign which encompasses a series of activities designed to demonstrate to teenagers that the choices they make now have far-reaching implications to their future.
It will involve school visits, interaction with learners and road shows regarding underage drinking; inter-school competitions that drive home the message around underage drinking; curriculum-aligned lesson plans for teachers; a practical guide for parents as well as resources for teenagers including counselling, reading material and an advanced reality game. The game which will run in selected schools in and around Durban from today and late March – will make use of a number of different platforms ranging from traditional to social media. Obviously we support this initiative and are quite excited about it.
We are here to say to young people, that you are very important to us. We love you very much. You are our future. Don’t give your life away. Every time you feel tempted to do something, yield and think about the possible consequences of your actions.
We do realise that you are under immense pressure from communities who care less about you! You girls easily fall prey to older men who just want to use you and leave you just like that. Don’t be fooled into thinking these older men love you. They have their families and in most cases they have already carved their own future. You still have your future ahead of you!
And for you boys, we know that drug-dealers are always looking for young men to sell illicit substances in schools. They make a lot of make through you. But do you get in the end – the consequences for you a dire. Don’t get involved in drugs. We know that some of you come from families that are beset with these problems. But we want to say to you, keep your mind clear. Know what you want for your future and you will achieve. There will always be people wanting to pull you sideways – but you need to have a dream and focus on it.
We believe that the social ills and troubles we are facing have become a public issue and of grave concern, therefore require our focused attention. It is no exaggeration to say these troubles have developed into a barrier to education for our learners. We need to act now, rather than later. So this campaign couldn’t have come at a more opportune time.
In the 1950s, an American Sociologist, C. Wright Mills drew a distinction between personal troubles and public issues as follows:
“An issue is a public matter when values cherished by publics are felt to be under threat…”
Underage drinking has become a public issue and as the community in Education we feel very much under threat. It is for this reason that we are taking active steps to deal with this evil.
We want to produce learners that we can be proud of. The generation that will take this country to another level – a generation we can all be proud of. A generation that will not succumb to social pressures - that would result in the demise of this wonderful nation.
I want to take this opportunity to extend our heartfelt appreciation again to our partners in this campaign. For it is through cooperation that we this country can prevail and maintain the good standing that this country achieved through our forebears who gallantly fought for our freedom.
Let us all play our part in ensuring that children learn; that schools becomes the centres for learning; that learners are protected against all evils and schools indeed do become centres of excellence. On our part, as the department, we are committed to the delivery of quality education!
I thank you.
