Commentary 07the – 14th November, 09

The alcohol abuse among Zambia’s young people should be a wake-up call for government to redefine the effectiveness of the current youth empowerment programmes and job creation policies. Joblessness and lack of engagement into economic activities among the young people of Zambia should be deemed as a time bomb. Hundreds of thousands of youths are roaming the streets. The majority are in urban areas where the potential for alcohol abuse, crime and prostitution is high.

Those in rural areas have no meaningful ventures that will support their economic goals. Agriculture at the moment has subsistent empowering capacity and the existing structures of financial, technical and marketing support have not adequately and profitably converted those rural energies into desirable wealth and incomes.

The absorption capacity by industry in terms of jobs created is lower than the number of graduates and school leavers looking for employment. We require a comprehensive and all-encompassing strategy that will harness all efforts aimed at empowering young people.

First, the existing financing arrangement for youths for enterprise is substantially inadequate. The youth empowerment fund should be a stand a lone so that young people do not have to compete with experienced adults for financing.

Second, there is need to develop capacity in vocational training centres country wide. These centres are currently under-funded. In addition, the skills offered currently do not meet the minimum standards for competitive enterprise.

Third, the Zambia Development Agency should incorporate the businesses that are operated by youths into the business-linkages programme. By doing this, young entrepreneurs will be able to produce goods that will be supplied to large corporate entities such as mining companies and manufacturers. Once the markets are guaranteed through this match-making, most of the young people will source financing from commercial banks in the near future.

Forth, youth empowerment initiatives should be spread across the country to avoid urban drift. The concentration of young people into high density areas is the reason for the rise in crime and other social vices. This is because Lusaka and the Copperbelt appear to attract much of the existing financing arrangements.

Fifth, there should be deliberate fiscal and policy initiatives that will motivate private companies to absorb large numbers of young people into mainstream employment.

We should be deliberate about youth empowerment programmes otherwise alcohol abuse among youths and those who are under-age will never end.