“It’s time to empower the youth, not to lead tomorrow, but today” George Kambala

By: Ludorf Iyambo

Affirmative Repositioning (AR) member of parliament George Kambala on Wednesday tasked the house to introduce and properly resource a National Youth Development Fund.

According to Kambala such a fund will ensure young people from Olukonda to Tubusis, from Katima Mulilo to Keetmanshoop, can access unrestricted funding and support to turn their ideas into reality.

“Let us not design another programme that looks good on a brochure but fails in the bank queue. Let us put young people on land, not just in slogans, but in deeds. Let us ensure that youth cooperatives and agribusinesses are given access to arable land and affordable financing without collateral or a grant,” stated Kambala.

Kambala added that should the house not act now a generation will be raised that feels betrayed and neglected by the very soil they were born to.

He explained that the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) that government rectified in 2019 remains a bureaucratic milestone, and that it is an opportunity that cannot be entered into with old inequalities.

He said young Namibians must be equipped, resourced, and mobilised to compete, to collaborate, and to lead.

“So let us be honest, our youth policies are scattered, underfunded, and disconnected from real-time realities. There is a mismatch between rhetoric and budget, between intention and implementation. Our current developmental frameworks are structurally misaligned with the aspirations of our youth. We are designing for a past that no longer exists. We are trying to fix 21st century problems with 20th century thinking,” he emphasised.

Kambala therefore asked that the proposed National Youth Development Fund must be structured and streamlined to address youth development initiatives, adding it is time the house moves beyond the notion that youth only belong in sports, entertainment or the creative industry.

He explained that while these are important sectors which he will continue to champion, young people must also become active players in energy, mining, agriculture, construction, logistics, ICT, and governance sectors.

“Opportunities must be equitably distributed, and rural youth must no longer be treated as invisible. Windhoek is not Namibia. We must actively foster youth entrepreneurship. We must provide incubation centres that don’t just train but fund. We must recognise exceptional business acumen not only by age, but by potential, and support it with tax breaks, procurement inclusion, and direct investment,” he added.

He further stated that, across every sector of the economy, there are highly educated, innovative, and talented young Namibians.

“It is time to empower them to lead not tomorrow, but today. We must appoint them to boards of government enterprises and institutions. Their voices must be present at the decision-making tables where policies about their future are being made. The absence of a youth quota in key national structures is not only a legislative gap it is a moral failure” Kambala said.

He asked the house not to miss the opportunity to reshape Namibia through experience, passion, and the sharp vision of its young leaders.

“Our people do not suffer from a poverty of ideas. They suffer from poverty of access. And that honourable members only political will can fix,” he stated.

He said the youth are not the leaders of tomorrow, they are already leading, leading in the streets, in start-ups, in studios, and on stages.

“All we must do is clear the path, hand over the mic, and support their fire with policy and power,” said Kambala.

The post “It’s time to empower the youth, not to lead tomorrow, but today” George Kambala first appeared on Future Media News.

The post “It’s time to empower the youth, not to lead tomorrow, but today” George Kambala appeared first on Future Media News.