Put the youth first

YOUNG people should be placed in the forefront of land reform as they are the most affected by the high percentage of unemployment.

Statistics SA revealed that the burden of unemployment concentrated among the youth as they account for 63.5% of the total number of unemployed persons. This is irrespective of the education level.

As Youth Month comes to a close, young people should seek to emulate the 1976 generation who, despite the odds they faced, fought against an unjust system and inspired change.

Therefore, the current generation should take a leaf from their book and seek ways to defeat the unemployment challenge. President Cyril Ramaphosa at the Youth Day commemorations event reiterated that it is the shared responsibility of government, business, labour and civil society to develop pathways for young people to work.

This is a sensible call by the president as it will take a joint effort from all relevant stakeholders to create an environment that will enable economic participation for the youth. Furthermore young people should be encouraged to become entrepreneurs and curve out new opportunities for themselves through venturing into business. One venture they should look at is the agricultural sector. There are great economic opportunities in agriculture that need to be cultivated and turned into profitable business ventures. Farming and agriculture has now occupied the national agenda with talks around expropriation of land without compensation being discussed.

Young people should be prioritised when land is redistributed to allow them an opportunity to participate in the lucrative agriculture sector. They should be given land, equipment and proper training and support to make sure that they succeed. By so doing, the government would have created an environment that enables the youth to be entrepreneurs who create jobs for themselves and their fellow mates.