Online Reporter
Nqobile Bhebhe, [email protected]
Youth economic empowerment remains a critical mandate for the Zanu PF Youth League as the ruling party intensifies efforts to equip young people with skills, resources and opportunities to participate in national economic development.
Addressing a public lecture at Bulawayo Polytechnic on “Harnessing Students’ Potential for Sustainable Industrialisation and Vision 2030,” Bulawayo Provincial Youth League chairman Cde Freedom Murechu urged students to actively participate in Government economic empowerment programmes and contribute ideas towards national development.
He said the youth should view education not only as a pathway to employment, but also as a foundation for entrepreneurship, innovation and participation in the broader economy.
“It is our mandate as Zanu PF youth league to ensure that you go to school and it is also our mandate to ensure that you participate in economic empowerment activities in the country,” he said.
Cde Murechu, who is also Member of Parliament for Nkulumane Constituency said young people should engage policymakers and legislators on challenges affecting them adding that their ideas could help shape Government policies and legislation.
He encouraged students to make use of available platforms to present proposals that could be incorporated into national development programmes.
“In Parliament we advance issues that affect the youth, so feel free to engage us with your ideas.
“Any other law can be changed depending on situations,” he said.
The remarks come at a time when Government is placing increasing emphasis on youth participation in economic development, entrepreneurship, innovation and industrialisation as part of efforts to achieve the country’s Vision 2030 target of an upper-middle-income economy.
For tertiary students, such engagement provides an avenue to connect academic and technical skills with opportunities in industry, while also allowing policymakers to better understand the challenges confronting young entrepreneurs and graduates.
Cde Murechu said efforts were also being made to connect young people with financial institutions to improve access to capital for business development.
“We plan to bring financial institutions to discuss how they can advance business loans to you,” he said.
Access to affordable finance remains one of the major challenges facing young entrepreneurs, particularly students and graduates seeking to commercialise innovations or establish small and medium-sized enterprises.
Closer interaction between students, policymakers, financial institutions and industry could therefore help bridge the gap between training and economic participation by enabling young people to understand available funding mechanisms, regulatory requirements and market opportunities.
The engagement at Bulawayo Polytechnic also underscores the importance of tertiary institutions in providing a pipeline of skilled young people capable of driving industrialisation.
The push for youth economic empowerment is consequently becoming an important component of the broader national industrialisation agenda, with young people being encouraged to move beyond seeking formal employment and consider entrepreneurship and innovation as alternative pathways to economic participation.
