11 October 2006
The National Youth Commission (NYC) convened a regular meeting of the
Chairpersons' Forum in Ekurhuleni, Gauteng, on 10 to 11 October 2006. In
attendance were the Chairpersons, extended to Female Commissioners and those
with disabilities from all nine Provincial Youth Commissions.
The meeting welcomed the newly appointed NYC members, including those of the
newly set-up Gauteng and Eastern Cape Provincial Youth Commissions. The meeting
was addressed by the Deputy Minister of the Department of Home Affairs on
'Instruments of youth development, Are we winning?' The meeting reaffirmed its
commitment to continuing with the national development programme to ensure that
youth are part of the force to combat poverty and unemployment.
As part of her opening remarks to the meeting, the NYC Chairperson, Nomi
Nkondlo, highlighted the need to situate youth development at the centre of the
Programme of Action of government by ensuring that the youth sector, through
the National Youth Commission, participates in the government structures that
drive the national development programme. Such structures and processes include
the Cluster of Government departments where policy implementation is
operationalised, as well as the alignment of the Youth Commission planning
process to the Medium Term Expenditure Framework.
The meeting noted some of the current challenges, including:
* the limiting mandate of the NYC
* the NYC remains relevant in spearheading the youth development agenda in the
country, but remains constrained in driving the implementation of policies it
lobbies and advocates for
* the need to strengthen co-ordination with Provincial Youth Commissions. The
implementation of the youth development agenda requires concrete commitment
from Provincial Governments and local authorities. The meeting noted the urgent
need to engage key role-players in local governance, including the Department
of Provincial Affairs and Local Government, in order to ensure that youth
development is included in the tools of local governance such as the Integrated
Development Plans
* the slow pace in the institutionalisation of youth development at local
government level.
The following are some of the resolutions taken at the end of the
meeting:
1. The Policy review convention
The meeting deliberated on the process of the policy review that is
currently taking place as per the cabinet statement of 23 November 2005. The
processes seek to respond to the impact assessment of the National Youth
Development Policy Framework 2002/2007. The meeting noted the following as
process contributing to the policy review:
* the National Youth Convention resolutions
* Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) Research Study State of Youth
Development 2006 (A Mid Term Review Discussion Document)
The meeting resolved on the following action steps to take the process on
the policy review forward:
* the tabling of the Convention outcomes before the next Cabinet Lekgotla by
January 2007
* the establishment of an all inclusive technical working group to deal with
the policy transition
* engage with different youth sectors around the policy transition
* the engagement of public participation in matters pertaining to the policy
transition
* strengthening the call for the adoption of a National Youth Policy.
2. National Youth Service Programme
The meeting also noted the challenges encountered with the regard to the
rollout of the National Youth Service (NYS) programme since the successful
launch in 2004. It was also observed that a number of initiatives are being
implemented by various government departments under the guise of the NYS. Some
of these programmes are genuine in their nature and have yielded very positive
results. Among those listed are the NYS Housing Project in the Moses Kotane
Municipality, North West, and the Bela-Bela Housing project in Limpopo.
Other fundamental challenges confronting the NYS is the absence of a
dedicated budget to the NYS and limited support from some of the development
funding institutions, including Umsobomvu Youth Fund. It was also noted that
many young people have participated in the NYS projects, but some are still
faced with a challenge of accessing exit opportunities.
The Lekgotla resolved to engage government departments, including the
private sector, in order to find a long lasting solution to this challenge.
The meeting commended steps taken by the Deputy President to do a review of
all initiatives on NYS. Such a process would make an assessment of the current
policy environment in order to identify bottlenecks, opportunities and make
recommendations on how to take forward the NYS into a coherent National Youth
Service Policy as mooted by the NYC in consultation with youth formations. The
meeting welcomed the timeline set for the completion of this process which is
March 2007.
3. Unity among youth development agencies
The meeting also took note of the perceived competition among youth
development role-players in the country. It called upon all entities, both
within and outside of government, to adhere to their mandates to avoid
duplication in the implementation of the youth development agenda. It was
agreed that such a sense of responsibility would promote unity and harmony
among all stakeholders towards the prosperity of all South Africa's youth.
The meeting reiterated its call for the equitable distribution of resources
allocated to UYF throughout all nine provinces. As part of its monitoring and
evaluation programme, the meeting resolved that a memorandum of understanding
should be developed between the NYC and Umsobomvu Youth Fund (UYF).
The meeting noted the challenges confronting the South African Youth Council
(SAYC) as an entity established to co-ordinate and provide a platform for
civil-society youth engagement. It then resolved to strengthen the relations
with the SAYC to facilitate a stronger and increased participation in national
development.
Matric examination
The meeting wished the Class of 2006 good luck in their matric exams. The
collective further expressed its confidence that all role-players, including
learners, educators, parents and law enforcement agencies would deliver an
incident-free examination.
Commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the Soweto and connected
uprisings
The meeting also received reports on the commemoration of the 30th
anniversary of the Soweto and connected uprisings. The Lekgotla expressed a
word of gratitude to all stakeholders who played a key role in ensuring that
the youth development agenda is entrenched.
The meeting noted some of the activities still outstanding as part of the
30th Anniversary of 16 June 1976. These include the Presidential Youth Awards,
Memorial Lectures, Batsha Arts Festival. The meeting agreed to proceed with
these activities as informed by the national theme of the 'Age of Hope,' to
deepen youth participation in development.
Africa
The meeting reaffirmed its commitment to aligning the youth development
agenda of South Africa to that of Africa. It resolved to:
* priorities the building of relations with the African Union member
states
* formalise relations with the Pan African Youth Union
* promote full participation of South African youth in the appropriate
programmes of the Pan African Youth Union
The safety of our schools
The meeting noted the recent spate of incidents of violence in our schools.
A call was made to the education authorities to work very closely with law
enforcement agencies to root out all criminal activities, including drugs, from
our schools and communities.
HIV and AIDS
The meeting reaffirmed its support of the government HIV and AIDS Strategy
to promote prevention, especially the promotion of the 'ABC' approach. It was
agreed to work very closely with the South African National Aids Council
towards ensuring that the spread of HIV is minimised among young people.
For comments contact:
Monde Mkalipi
Cell: 082 575 3976
Issued by: National Youth Commission
11 October 2006
