BLANTYRE-(MaraviPost)-Blantyre City South legislator Noel Lipipa has urged Malawian leaders to put the interests of the youth at the centre of the country’s development agenda.
He made the appeal on Saturday at a Town Hall Meeting held in Blantyre’s Robbins Park by ‘Fredo penjani Kalua, which attracted over 1,000 young people from the constituency.
Lipipa called on leaders to confront the challenges that impede Malawi’s development and prosperity.
He stressed that the youth had the potential to solve problems if they were given space and listened to.
Lawmaker said there are huge opportunities to be taken advantage of, contrary to the popular belief that Malawi is a poor country.
“Malawi is not a poor, not at all,” he said, “Malawians have the ability to solve their problems, and the youth are ready to contribute to finding the solutions that can save this country.”
He also said that leaders must do their part to ensure the young people are seen as equal partners in the development process.
“We know that you have ideas about how to trade more efficiently, how to fight climate change, how to reduce inequality and more, so we must listen and work with you,” Lipipa said.
He, however, challenged the youth to be disciplined in order to succeed in whatever they did.
The legislator added that, “hard work, even though it is wise to work, is meaningless without a purpose. Therefore, you must keep in mind your purpose, which is, who you are, what you want to become, where you want to go and all that motivates your mind. Discipline must be added to that purpose. Discipline guides us, it measures and informs us on excesses, whether personal or in the society,” he said.
Fredo echoed Lipipa’s sentiments that Malawi’s prosperity cannot be achieved without the involvement of the youth.
He said that without the involvement of young people, the country will not be able to find new sources of growth, especially at a time when the world is struggling with climate change, food insecurity, and high costs of living.
He said that the youth in Malawi must be given priority, and that the Malawian constitution requires the state to take steps to ensure full participation of the youth in the social, political and economic life of the nation.
Both leaders urged the implementation of youth-oriented policies, including international instruments such as SADC’s Youth Policy, African Union’s Agenda 2063, and United Nations Youth 2014.
