Skills Development Summit
The reality is that young people have talents and needs that communities can no longer afford to ignore. When we fail to provide support and opportunities, as adults they may experience unemployment, have drug or alcohol problems, commit crimes, and become a drain on community resources. When young people are nurtured by caring adults, are given opportunities to become involved in education or work that builds their skills, are supported and protected during challenging times, and are actively engaged in community activities, they become valuable contributors to the quality of community life.
Purpose of this skills development seminar is to engage young people in designing a community's approach to providing youth with opportunities and services. They often know best what works for them, and their inclusion is an investment in both their positive development and long-term community change on behalf of all youth.
Target group
- Young people between the ages of 18 to 35
- Yonug people both in and out of school
- Higher education students and Unemployed graduates
- Employed and unemployed young people
Young people as valuable contributors to the quality of community life:
Young people are both tomorrow's leaders, parents, professionals and workers and today's assets. Properly supported and given the right opportunities, girls and boys, young women and young men can play a significant part in lifting themselves, their families and communities out of poverty.
As an organization with intention to advocate for young people, we have dedicated or resource and capacity in empowering young people towards the ability to be accountable and for that we hereby advocate that young people should be spearheading initiatives and efforts to improve and solve the challenges related to skills development within the country.
The following four remains top of our Agenda throughout the summit
- SETA services (Scares skills, skills development programmes and collaborations )
- SAAYC (Young people as initiators)Advocacy and Partnerships
- Department of Labour (Youth Participations and skills development programmes)
- Addressing (Scares skills and Lack of skills) amongst young people
Active approach in skills development
A shift in working with young people, and valuing them as assets: as advisors, colleagues and stakeholders are crucial if development policies are to be truly representative and effective. Youth participation: the active, informed and voluntary involvement of people in decision-making and the life of their communities (both locally and countrywide) are vital if this is to be achieved. In ascending order of responsibility, young people can participate in development as beneficiaries, partners and leaders (The DFID-CSO three-lens approach and in reference to IYD – Integrated Youth Development Framework). Participation means work with and by young people, not merely work for them.
Definitions of beneficiaries, partners and leaders:
| Working for youth as beneficiaries |
Defined as the basics of a good intervention for young people:
- Youth as beneficiaries implies they are a target group and are adequately informed;
- Explicitly focuses on youth issues through documentation;
- Can prepare the ground for working with youth as partners.
|
Engaging with youth as partners
(Integrated Youth development framework) |
Defined as:
- Collaborative interventions, where young people are fully consulted and informed;
- Implies mutual co-operation and responsibility;
- Recognises that young people generally need experience working at this level before progressing to becoming leaders and initiators of development (if appropriate) – a progression which not all will want or be able to make. Reference to IYD
|
| Supporting youth as leaders |
Defined as:
- Enabling youth-initiated and directed interventions;
- Opening up a space for youth-led decision-making (delegation) within existing structures, systems and processes
|
The youth development approach is predicted on the understanding that all young people need support, guidance, and opportunities. With this support, they can develop self-assurance in the five areas that are key to creating a happy, healthy, and successful life:
- As sense of leadership : being initiators
- Sense of competence : being able to do something well
- Sense of usefulness : having something to contribute
- Sense of belonging : being part of a community
- Sense of control : having control over ones future
The aim of them seminar is to advocate towards young people being the initiators in partnership with government, private business, youth NGOs, Religious Youth entities and other youth formations.
|
