Online Reporter
National Focus
Dr Jenfan Muswere
We reproduce in full, Minister of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Dr Jenfan Muswere’s speech at the International Youth Summit on Land and Economic Freedom (IYSOLEF) 2025 yesterday.
***************
It is both an honour and a privilege to stand before you at this decisive and timely International Youth Summit on Land and Economic Freedom (IYSOLEF) 2025, convened under the theme “Land and Economic Freedom: The Key to Africa’s Sustainable Development”.
Let me begin by commending the Africa Youth Congress, led with clarity and courage by Cde Taurai Kandishaya, for organising this historic platform. Your leadership has opened a necessary and bold space for the African youth to converge, reflect and chart a way forward with regard to the land issue and how it affects the young generation. You have managed to do this with dignity, sovereignty and truth.
Ladies and gentlemen, this summit is more than a conference, it is a counter-narrative. It is a reclamation of voice, a conscious attempt to redefine how we speak of ourselves, our land and our future. And this is important, because for far too long, Africa’s story has been written for us, not by us. It has been filtered through foreign interests, tainted by colonial prejudices and packaged by media empires that neither understand our pain nor believe in our potential.
Platforms like IYSOLEF are critical to resisting this information imbalance. They represent a new frontier in information sovereignty, where African voices, especially those of the youth, assert control over the narrative.
We cannot continue to rely on systems that were designed to oppress us to now liberate us. It is neither practical nor just to expect the architects of our marginalisation to now become authors of our redemption. We must do it ourselves.
At the centre of that distorted narrative is an issue that touches the past, the present and the future: land.
The land question is not simply about hectares or boundaries.
It is about identity, our birthright. It is about historical justice. It is about whether or not Africans are fully free.
Land was the first resource grabbed during colonisation. It all started with the portioning of Africa in 1884-1885 during the Berlin Conference into territories of the colonial powers. This era, known as the Scramble for Africa, was meant to seize resources from Africa, which included land.
Colonial atrocities where committed against Africans and this raised appetite by our freedom fighters to take weapons and engage the colonial powers.
This was to reclaim our land, which is our heritage.
In the year 2000, Zimbabwe embarked on the land reform exercise, whose objective was to take land back to the rightful owners, the majority black.
It is no coincidence that the Second Republic under the astute leadership of His Excellency Dr E.D. Mnangagwa is spearheading the process of giving title deeds to all citizens who benefitted from the land reform exercise as a way of finalising land ownership in the country.
Land distribution is a fundamental principle in economic empowerment, hence His Excellency Dr E.D. Mnangagwa has unveiled the title deeds programme.
Across the continent, we have seen how land continues to be the reason for conflict; both physical and ideological.
But land is also the foundation of our economy, the heart of our cultures and the spiritual link between generations. It is the root of agriculture, the stage for industry and the anchor of nationhood.
Our continent cannot develop sustainably while vast tracts of land remain underutilised or under foreign control.
Our land reform programme is not a mistake, instead, it is a milestone.
And, while it has been misunderstood, misrepresented and even vilified, we are committed to telling our side of the story accurately, proudly and unapologetically.
This is where you, the youth, come in.
In this digital age, the tools of narrative warfare are no longer locked in foreign newsrooms.
They are in your pockets. Your phones, your cameras, your keyboards. These are weapons of liberation if used responsibly.
While our President, His Excellency Dr E.D. Mnangagwa, is building Zimbabwe brick by brick, you must build Africa post by post.
Each image, each tweet, each blog or video contributes to the archive of our collective identity.
Let me hasten to caution you about the dangers of reckless postings. Do fact-check and be guided by ubuntu. Be aware because the stories we tell today will become the reference points of tomorrow.
Just as we study cave drawings to understand ancient civilisations, future generations will study our social media trails to understand who we were.
Will they see pride or shame? Will they find urgency or apathy? The answer depends on what we choose to post, to document and to defend.
We must also understand that there is a battle being waged for the soul of Africa, and narrative is its front line.
If we do not tell our story, others will continue to do so on our behalf and they will always portray us as incapable, corrupt and chaotic.
Even our most just struggles, like the fight for land reform, will be twisted into stories of dysfunction unless we tell them ourselves.
Let us, therefore, recast the narrative around African land reform not as anarchy, but as restitution. Not as failure, but as sovereignty.
We must be sincere, we must be bold and we must be factual.
The land was taken by force; returning it is an act of justice. This is not radicalism, it is reason.
And it is this kind of reasoned, principled messaging that must dominate African digital spaces.
Dear young people, your generation is not waiting in the wings, you are already on the stage.
The question is: Will you use your role to advance the continent or mimic the very systems that undermined it? The time for mimicry is over. The era of African authenticity must begin.
Ladies and gentlemen, the theme of this summit, “Land and Economic Freedom: The Key to Africa’s Sustainable Development”, is not just a slogan.
It is a mission. It calls us to dream differently, act decisively and speak boldly.
As young Africans, your role is not merely to receive wisdom, but to shape it. You must build your nations not only with policy, but with purpose. Not only with tools, but with truth.
In closing, I want to remind you that history is not made by accident. It is shaped by those who are willing to challenge, to question, to build and to believe. You are those people. This is your moment. Tell your story. Protect your land. Build your future.
Thank you.
Long live African youth.
Long live our struggle for land and dignity.
Long live Africa.
Dr Jenfan Muswere is the Minister of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services.
Online Reporter