Martin Endjala
Opportunities in the country are by-passing the youth of Namibia as tenders being awarded, are often won by those who are already well off or beyond the youth age.
This is according to the Landless People’s Movement youth command element leader Duminga Ndala, who said this last week Friday at a press briefing.
She dismayed that despite calls by the SADC Youth Protocol to empower the youth, the Namibian government continues to claim that they involve participation of young people in business
Ndala questioned this arguing that which young people are they talking about if the SADC Youth Protocol and the Namibian National Youth Policy defines the youth as those between the ages of 15-35.
Ndala further stressed that young people in this country continue to be undermined by institutions of government and this is evident by the poverty levels and high unemployment rate among the youth.
“The youth unemployment rate is currently at 46.1 percent because of a lack of class-agenda or class-analytic perspective to empower the youth”, she said.
She is of the opinion that this is due to not having clear-cut policy to target how many youths will be empowered over a certain period by government or private sector.
Ndala added that, the state continues to use the same meaningless modus operandi like the way they introduced the failed Black Economic Empowerment (BEE), TIPEEG (Targeted intervention Programme for Employment and Economic Growth) and the rejected NEEF (National Equitable Economic Empowerment Framework) and many others that were not target specific.
Institutions such as the National Youth Council, the Ministry of Sports, Youth, and National Services Ndala said, that they are tasked with the responsibility of promoting and advancing the social status of young people are quiet and have become spectators, whilst the Namibian youth continue to languish in poverty, economic exploitation and no ownership to the means of production.
Furthermore, she argued that the political rhetoric that the 2022/23 Financial Budget is youth centered is a complete lie and insult to our intelligence.
She Pointed out that not one part of the budget has reflected the needs and aspirations of young people in Namibia thus far.
“We, at the LPM Youth Command Element, have time and again called for the adoption of the Comprehensive integrated Youth Development Strategy that will ensure that every institution of government allocates a percentage of the budget towards youth development and advancement”, Ndala said.
Moreover, she emphasised that the Namibian government and by proxy its Central Procurement Board should be warned that young people are demographically the majority in this country, and they have the power to change the political landscape.
She continued saying that it must be made clear, that there is a new youth on the rise that is not begging for the right to be recognised, respected, and valued because they represent the future of this country.
Based on this background, they are therefor demanding CPBN to set aside its decision and restart the entire tender process. As well as suggesting that 30% of tenders awarded must be owned by young enterprises between the age if 15-35.
They are further demanding that the medical tender in question, be re-advertised again so that young people can bid, while also adding that the selection and awarding of tenders must be proportionate and representative of youth component in the country.
