SWAZI YOUTH IN A DEVELOPMENT CONTEXT

Sir,

I thought it would be a good idea to share some of the proceedings from fora I have participated in which have brought Swazi development issues to the fore. Attached herewith, is an excerpt from a conference held in Johannesburg in February which some of your readers may find interesting.

 
With the millennium development goals fast approaching their ‘sell-by’ date, many African countries find themselves short of the targets set. The situation is compounded by the fact that development targets since the inception of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) – now the African Union - many development aspirations have not been borne to fruition.

The failures by some African governments led to the Yaoundé declaration affirming that ‘at the close of the 20th century... of all the regions of the world, Africa is indeed the most backward in terms of development from whatever angle it is viewed and the most vulnerable as far as peace, security and stability are concerned’. In spite of the gloom that prevails over most African skies, it must be noted that progress has been made on many fronts.

Using a comparative analysis based on youth development indices, it can be demonstrated that the fortunes of African countries are mixed and diverse. Selection of an assessment of development using the youth was not arbitrary. Instead, the youth are a convenient cohort due to their position as ‘tomorrow’s future’. In addition, today’s young people in southern Africa have experienced relative peace and general stability in economic terms. As a result, conditions have been favourable for investing in their potential. It is on this basis that I pose the question ‘are the youth a critical cog for Africa’s future development?’

In responding to the question, I also consider whether levels in youth investment point towards a sustainable future or one mired in fits and starts. Swaziland and Zimbabwe are compared in southern Africa.

While the two are not representative of the region, their comparison is intended to serve as a baseline from which future comparisons can be made. Investing in human capital is at the centre of Swaziland and Zimbabwe’s development policies. In Swaziland, free universal primary education signifies government’s commitment, in spite of the operational challenges.

These investments in young people are expected to yield personal benefits, societal benefits and benefits at national level through economic growth and development.
Yet investing in human capital has proved difficult. For instance, in both countries the demographic groups with the highest HIV prevalence burden are the youth (in both countries, persons aged 15-35). The youth also face challenges in formal employment; Swaziland has a very high youth unemployment rate. Yet in spite of the challenges, both governments have made progress ensuring that young people have skills and competencies for work life.

Investments and their ‘sustainability effect’ are revealed in the measures for youth investment computed using data from national net secondary school results, healthy life expectancies, child survival rates and school enrolment rates.
The outcome for both countries (an index for youth investment) reveals that Swaziland has made steadier progress. However, both countries show very low levels of investment which suggest that while efforts have been plausible much more needs to be done. For example, the Swazi youth development index for 2010 is 0.27, which is much less than it’s Human Development Index of 0.498 in the same year.

From this single data set, it is clear that the youth are worse off than the general population. Zimbabwe, on the other hand, posted a youth index of only 0.33, but with a corresponding Human Development Index of 0.14.
This is puzzling considering that there are more schools, more health institutions and a wider array of services than at any time in Swaziland’s (and Zimbabwe’s) history.

What then are we to make of the sustainability of human capital among the youth in Swaziland and on the continent? Well, it is safe to say that while investments have been made, they are still quite inadequate. Furthermore, investments tend to focus on labour supply while the demand side shrinks in size through company closures and disinvestments.

The situation is worsened by what some commentators identify as a disparity between skills and competencies of school-leavers and demands of employers. In a world which has in some places reconfigured the work environment, labour market and government priorities, it is important that governments not only step up efforts to invest in young people but re-align their strategies to meet contemporary demands. Failure to do so will put today’s youth in a predicament which hardly augurs well for sustainability.

Admire Thonje, Zimbabwe

This is an excerpt of a conference paper presented by the author at a conference for young graduates and scholars held in Johannesburg in February 2014.

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