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LUSAKA, March 15 - The Zambian youths must begin to exploit their inner development potential as they participate in this year’s youth day celebrations. They have to acknowledge that as youths, they belong to the majority of the nations’ most productive age group. They therefore, must develop positive mind styles. This is because they have the basic responsibility to effectively contribute towards the national development of the country.
Youths need to seize the opportunity that has been opened up for them by the Government which has allocated K130.9 billion for technical and skills training, K787.4 billion to the housing and community amenities and the K334.1 billion for water supply and sanitation program which include provision of boreholes, water wells in rural, urban and peri-urban areas. This year’s youth day festival must not get blown with the wind as has been the case in previous events. We wish to call on the Zambian youths to ensure that the festival has to build a turning point for each of the youths to open their minds to positively take advantage of the effort being made by the government through provision of the above funds to various but critical dimensions of the national development system that concerns the youths in the 2007 national budget. If the youths can seize the opportunity given them by the government, the serious unemployment situation youths are faced with can soon become a thing of the past. The youths must come out of the 2007 youth day activities with serious dreams and direction which they have to translate into viable action so that they can meet this era’s social demands from hard work. Development of the nation is in an embarrassing circus because there is almost absolutely nothing positive that is being contributed to the general future welfare of the country by the youths because they are tied to different social evils. The youths must take up skills training initiatives that have been provided for by the government. These development skills will meet the national productivity potential requirements among the productive age group, which has been swallowed up by abnormal alcohol consumption and drug abuse.
However, the Government must other than the funds it has provided under the budget, also create more jobs for unemployed young women and young men. The Government needs to act on commitments made in the Millennium Declaration to ‘develop and implement strategies that give young people everywhere a real chance to find decent and productive work.’ As nation’s youth engage in the se celebrations countywide, we wish as DPI, to challenge the youth to refrain from bad social practices and establish themselves with new and better strong foundation for their future life by beginning processes of accessing the funds that have been provided by the government. Our celebrations will be another chase after the wind if the youths do not grab this opportunity. Youths must get united for skills training so that they can even develop the ability to speak for themselves and be able to effectively understand policies of national development.
The youths must get united in the quest for timely disbursement of these funds to all areas in the country so that through the increased investments in education and skills training, the nation can attain employment creation for youths. The Government has to also prioritise our labour market for Zambian Youths where it has been noticed that foreigners are taking-up jobs that can be handled by some of the unemployed Zambian youths and at the expense of youth empowerment. And community amenities are one of the major challenges that have pounded a serious injury on the social character of the nation’s youth. With revitalized community amenities, youths can spend time in recreation activities. Therefore, Development Partnership International (DPI) wishes to join in the 2007 youth day celebrations with a call for unity among the youth and timely disbursement of funds government pronounced in the budget to ensure implementation of these promises to the youths. Youths must celebrate to train in skills because DPI believes ‘NO EDUCATION, NO JOB: JUST DREAMS.’ For More Information Contact:
Richard Musauka
DPI Zambia Acting Media and Strategy Coordinator
Mobile 097119496
www.developmentpartnership.org
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Development Partnership International