As we celebrate 20 years of democracy, government intends to intensify its commitment to youth development in South Africa.
Historically, young people have played a pivotal role in the liberation struggle, which has brought about the democracy we enjoy today. Youth groups such as the class of 1976, in Soweto took to the streets against the might of the apartheid regime in a quest for freedom, equality and human rights.
The power, resilience and determination that young people showed then, is still present, but the challenge facing our society today is to harness that determination for advancement of our nation.
This force of youth can be used to combat challenges facing our communities today such as: poverty, unemployment, skills shortage, limited access to business opportunities, substance abuse, crime and violence against the vulnerable.
In his 2013 State of the Province Address, the Honourable Premier of Mpumalanga Province, Mr. DD Mabuza declared that his office will establish a dedicated unit to foster youth development in the province. The formation of this unit is tasked in the main with tackling and championing matters of youth development in the province through the office of the premier.
To this end, the Mpumalanga Provincial Government, through the Office of the Premier and in conjunction with the Mpumalanga Department of Education will be hosting the inaugural 2014 Mpumalanga Youth Development Summit as a platform to solicit views and ideas from the very youth of the province of Mpumalanga.
The 2014 Mpumalanga Youth Development Summit is a two days event hosted by the Mpumalanga Provincial Government in collaboration with the Mpumalanga Department of Education, supported by various strategic partners from both public and private sectors for the youth of Mpumalanga.
A variety of youth structures, groups, NGO’s, community youth leaders and ordinary young people of the province will be invited to attend the summit. The summit will take place in Secunda on the 29th and 30th April 2014.
- Day one will be at the SASOL Club in Mbalenhle Township
- Day two will be at the Lillian Ngoyi Stadium in Secunda, Mpumalanga.
On Day One, the session will be attended mainly by specifically identified and invited Young Leaders from different fields and disciplines whose main task will be to share ideas amongst themselves and with subject expects in their respective fields that affect Youth development prospects in the province of Mpumalanga. This will be facilitated in a conference style format.
Day Two will be a full day session where we will see young people coming from across all four corners of the province to attend the summit at the Secunda Stadium where they will get an opportunity to engage, interact and deliberate on matters affecting the youth as guided by discussions of Day 1.
For this session, there will be about 20 000 young people which will be bussed in from the various districts to participate in the Summit where they will see leaders of the province from the Department of Education and other government stakeholders address them directly on issues that affect them on a daily basis. This will also be an opportunity for the provincial government to introduce and highlight some of its key Youth Development Programs and Initiatives.
There are universal challenges that are faced by the general youth population of South Africa. The Mpumalanga Youth Development Summit seeks to hone in on these issues and localize them to specific provincial and regional challenges where the youth will then engage and have a direct communication line with the provincial government of their province so as to inform, advice and make solution recommendations on how to best deal with their issues as they see them as young people of the province.
Outcomes of these engagement and activities from the Youth Development Summit will then be handed over to the Honourable Premier of the province so as to be taken into consideration and be incorporated into youth development plans and programs that the provincial government will be implementing moving forward.
For press information, contact:
Jasper Zwane (Mpumalanga Department of Education)
Cell: 083 743 1804
Nick Mosikidi (Ninopa (Pty) Ltd)
Cell: 071 073 8585
Mandisa Ndlovu
Tel: 013 766 5500
Fax: 013 766 5518
Cell: 079 695 6073
E-mail: m.ndlovu@education.mpu.gov.za
