'We need Youth Parliament'

GOTHATAONE MOENG
Staff Writer | Friday June 21, 2013 00:00

 

At an advocacy and leadership training workshop for youth leaders this week, young people said they need a place where they cannot only dialogue about the challenges they face but also help craft policies that can create durable solutions to such challenges.One of them, Emmanuel Mogale, said he wishes for the establishment of an apolitical youth parliament legitimised by the Botswana Constitution.He said even though young people have the power to be heard through their votes, he feels that voting does not guarantee that young people's interests will be heard in Parliament.

'I do have the power to vote, but it is not guaranteed that the person I vote for will represent my interests as a young person,' he said.Another young person, Gogontlejang Phaladi, said the youth should be given authority and influence on issues that affect them.She said very often such workshops are convened and young people dialogue with people in power but nothing concrete comes out of the dialogue.

She said a platform should therefore be created where diverse groups of young people can be heard.  She also observed that sometimes young people living with disabilities, those in rural areas and those unemployed are neglected when it comes to youth participation in policy formulation.Boikango Modungwa, who encouraged her peers to use their skills to participate in the development of the country, also called for the establishment of a forum through which young people can be heard.

In 2004, Botswana used to have a youth parliament, which ended after just one session.The period between 2009 and 2018 has been declared by the African Union (AU) as the African Youth Decade.The plan of action for this decade seeks to create a context for the multi-sectoral engagement of all stakeholders towards the achievement of the goals and objectives of the African Youth Charter.