Youth organisations need govt funding

Sir,

Please allow me to comment on some issues that are affecting the youth of Eswatini. Some of our leaders are quiet about these issues, yet they see what is going on.

To fight HIV/AIDS and to improve young people’s lives, there was no funding available for these organisations, yet there are a lot of them in the country.

Funding

Government should ensure that there is domestic funding for these organisations, and this funding should not necessarily be for young people with HIV/AIDS, but it should be for the youth in general.

Furthermore, young people should be trained as they cannot do everything on their own. It would be advantageous for the youth if government ensured that vocational skills training were made available at community level, and at affordable prices, to be able to cater for the underprivileged youth.

Skills

It is not everyone who can manage to get to university, thus the vocational skills attained can go a long way in developing and empowering the youth in rural areas, where life is hard for most.

The youth fund was a good initiative but majority of the youth was hindered by their inability to compile business plans.

The youth should be at the centre of government’s response. EmaSwati should not expect too much from the youth, especially without the necessary psychological support. There are a number of issues that young people are dealing with such as stigmatisation by their peers. There is a need to ensure that services available to young people are youth friendly and youth focused.

Services

The services provided for young people should be under one roof because when they are made to move from one place to another, there is a risk of losing that particular young person. There is a need that the information made available for the youth is tailor-made and informative.

Edwin Dlamini