Reinvent yourselves, youths told

THE widening gap in terms of economic independence and empowerment in the country has resulted in youths being thrown on the side-lines of the growth arena, says Evangelical Youth Alliance (EYA).

EYA Executive Director, Moses Lungu, said there was a huge gap between the young and elderly in society in terms of growth and empowerment.

Reverend Lungu said the older people in the country seemed to have an advantage economically over youths which had led to the escalation of abuse from adults on the youth.

Speaking in an interview with the Daily Nation in Ndola, he stated that the situation had continued to constrict the young people in poverty.

He said young people were denied opportunities to wok while they were still young stating that 80 percent of Zambia’s population was out of employment.

“Unemployment has continued to be a very serious scourge that has led to some of the young to engage into illicit behaviours,” he said.

Rev Lungu said the young had no or little options but advised them to take the Youth Day as a golden opportunity to reinvent their will. Rev Lungu said there was need to have meaningful provocation within the youths which would result to a change in the mind-set.

Once the youths reinvented themselves, he said, they would be economically independent and this would lead to an economic boom in terms of entrepreneurship among the young.

He said with the discovery of gold in Eastern and North- western Provinces, the young should take up the challenge so that they were not sidelined. Rev Lungu further urged the youths to sober up and desist from engaging in illicit behaviour such as casual sex and alcohol abuse.