By Mutsa Murenje in Ibadan Nigeria
On 10th July 2010 I was privileged to address a youth gathering in Lagos, Nigeria. The event was organised by the Nigerian Chapter of the World Youth Alliance Africa. My topic was: “African Youth: Our Challenges, Our Future and Our Hope”.
It was indeed a great honour to be part of that wonderful and diverse group of participants present to debate key issues pertinent to the youth of Africa, and more importantly, to propose strategies for tackling those problems. Their presence there clearly demonstrated their profound commitment to the development, strengthening and promotion of youth on the continent.
In light of the above, I humbly submit that we, the youth, should properly prepare ourselves to be leaders in all spheres of life. Some people have called me the future president of the Republic of Zimbabwe and some believe I make a fine youth minister. Some have even gone to the extent of telling me that I can be the Prime Minister! My own people in Chipinge West constituency have indicated that they want me to represent them in the August House! And so on and so forth.
But I am not worried about all this, at least for now. I am only 27 and I still want to get settled. On the consequences of fame this is what my dead hero Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr had to say: “One of the frustrations of any young man is to approach the heights at such an early age. The average man reaches this point maybe in his late forties or early fifties. But when you reach it so young, your life becomes a kind of decrescendo. You feel yourself fading from the screen at a time you should just be starting to work toward your goal.
Frankly, I’m worried to death. A man who hits the peak at twenty-seven has a tough job ahead. People will be expecting me to pull rabbits out of the hat for the rest of my life. If I don’t or there are no rabbits to be pulled, then they’ll say I’m no good” (Quoted in the New York Post, April 14, 1957). What then do I want?
Our Challenges
The challenges we are facing are legion: challenges of poverty, employment, education, health, conflict and participation in decision making. These challenges are all equally important and in fact interlinked.
Our governments have failed to give adequate attention to our plight and this has resulted in rising cases of HIV/AIDS infection, prostitution, and exclusion from the decision-making process, unemployment and involvement in violent crimes. The high rate of violent crimes, armed robbery and prostitution can be traced to unemployment and exclusion from the decision-making process.
The economic growth of some African countries, mainly the oil-exporters, is robust but the youth are not benefiting. Due to having less experience and, in some cases, inadequate education (and even when we are well-educated there may be no jobs!), we are the last to be hired and more importantly, the last to benefit from decent jobs in the formal sector.
Many of us are finding jobs, but we are only finding them in the urban informal sector, taking up low-paid and dangerous employment that does not even lift us out of the morass of poverty. For this reason, it is imperative that we create decent jobs, not just any jobs, those jobs that provide career prospects and decent employment conditions.
Our Future and Our Hope
It is easy to be overwhelmed into despair by the magnitude of the challenges that we are facing but our governments must try to do everything possible to ease our plight. We are Africa’s greatest resource and it is only through our active and full participation in societal processes and decisions that we can surmount the difficulties that lie ahead.
The bottom line is that without us African countries can never reach their full potential especially as we attempt to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Africa can never be what she ought to be unless and until we are what we ought to be. We have a lifetime of potential productivity ahead of us and we are not in a position in which we have nothing to work with-we already have capacities, talents, missions, direction and callings.
In fact, we are the generation with the most ambition, motivation and creativity. We are partners, assets and a prerequisite for sustainable development and for the peace and prosperity of Africa with a unique contribution to make to the present and to future development. We therefore need the right support and environment to tap our potentials and contribute to the economic, social and political dimensions of society.
Leadership
As we are readying ourselves to be leaders in all spheres of life we also intend to carry our nations to the Promised Land. We need conscience and compassion, commitment to upholding the public trust, driven by fairness, justice and equity. Are we prepared to be assessed by our service to God and to humanity and not by the amount of wealth we have amassed? We have in leadership positions people of questionable character, but, are we going to be any better?
In short, our own success as leaders largely depends on perseverance, consistency and excellence driven by confidence and humility. I remain your humble servant until next time.
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