This Youth Month is one of the most significant South Africa has faced since 1976.
It could mark a turning point in our history if the government and broader society recognise the essential role young people play in fighting the pandemic; and they continue to engage the youth as essential to overcoming the crisis.
The youth activators in our network were the best-equipped in terms of moving swiftly to step in where the government was lacking in terms of service delivery to communities.
The story makes the pivotal point that youth should be stakeholders in youth policy development.
Through some of our youth hubs and the ecosystem of relationships that has been mobilised, our youth stepped in when lockdown happened, to assist with soup kitchens, where food parcels weren’t getting through to communities in need. They translated Covid-19 health information into their vernacular so that it was easier to understand in their rural communities; they mobilised youth to assist with getting information to the most vulnerable; they were part of the community workers at the forefront of testing, and some started creative projects to capture the historical significance of the lockdown through poetry and storytelling.
The young people answered the call to service and made a significant contribution. The conversation we need to have: As Covid-19 is here to stay, what are the effects on unemployment and on communities? How do we respond to the poverty gap that will widen?
In reflecting on Youth Month and the youth activism that aligned to it in times of crisis, we must look to the historical significance of youth activism. In 1976, young people drove political change. Young people were at the centre of the fight against HIV/Aids through the Treatment Action Campaign, which culminated in the largest HIV treatment programme in the world.
Under the pandemic, young people are once again being called to be of service. The pandemic has exposed the reality of what is happening on the ground and the rampant level of poverty. The youth are at the forefront of that.
We have to ask ourselves: "Why are the youth not essential stakeholders in affecting policy change? They are often the ones who respond quickly, leveraging networks like our Activate Change Drivers’ network, and being able to perform the change in their environments. The youth must be seen as essential stakeholders in a crisis."
As a youth network, we have tried to be present at all important policymaking decisions and we are making a call now for the government, business and civil society to include the youth in all important conversations on youth policy and youth inclusion in solutions to fight the pandemic and aid communities on the ground.
In times of crisis, this is what we should be reflecting on, as a society:
It is important for us to know what the virus is and means, so we can tell the story in our own language to our communities.
We need to recognise where we are, what networks we can access and how we can start educating and mobilising for our future world.
The government must see the youth as stakeholders, as resourceful and as a resource. Activate Change Drivers has been providing input in youth policy for years and working with young people around youth policy in order to gather their input.
The crisis has shown us, once again, that there is space for citizen activism to fill the gap, for change and for the youth to be recognised as an essential service. Since 1976, the youth have led the revolution. We have shown our worth, we have done the work. We are ready.
* Althea Farmer, executive director: operations, Activate Change Drivers.
** The views expressed here are not necessarily those of Independent Newspapers.
Cape Argus
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