BCP unveils youth 'wish list,' promises 300 000 jobs
Botswana Congress Party (BCP) has become the first political party in Botswana to launch a youth manifesto.
The manifesto was launched by the party president, Dumelang Saleshando over the weekend in Francistown.
Saleshando urged the youth to not let go of the hope for a better future. He said that it is heart-breaking to see young people who cannot dream big because of the circumstances that they find themselves in.
Through the BCP, Saleshando promises young people the opportunity to live and dream. In five years, the BCP promises to take 50 000 young people from the streets and into technical colleges.
He criticised the BCP political opponents for stealing BCP’s ideas and adding onto them.
In the next five years the BCP promises to invest in the knowledge based economy so that people may upscale their educational knowledge.
The BCP youth league (BCPYL) president Bonnie Tlhagwane said that it is disheartening that the President of Botswana does not care about Batswana, adding that President Masisi is not concerned about the high unemployment rate in Botswana.
Tlhagwane said that the BCP youth will not sit by and watch the nation go down. The BCPYL Vice President June June, added that the BCP was promising to deliver at least 300 000 jobs to Batswana. He explained that 47 000 graduated youth are roaming the streets unemployed, whilst the government of the day has absolved itself of any responsibility in the issue. Furthermore, he explained that the youth are absent in decision making process of the government.
He said that those that the government calls youth are actually old people but the BCP promises to deliver a youth national assembly within two years of getting state power. He said that the youth are capable of speaking for themselves and delivering their issues to the government in an effective way.
June said the current educational setup of Botswana is not beneficial to the youth of Botswana and the BCP wants to develop multiple pathways.
“This will ensure that we cater for different learning needs alongside traditional academic programmes and therefore accommodate different career aspirations,” June said.
The BCPYL manifesto is a 10-point manifesto that aims to establish a national youth assembly within two years of government; Establish meritorious quotas for qualified youth in the Parastatal Boards; enrol 50 000 young people into Technical Colleges and Brigades by 2029; Sponsor unabsorbed youth for further studies up to PhD Level; Provide procurement quotas for businesses owned by youth; Incubate and mentor youth owned businesses;
Pay Tertiary student allowance of P3 000; establish Botswana Film Industry Development Initiative; establish a robust Multi-Faceted strategy for Innovation and Digital Development and Prepare local productions for platforms such as Netflix and Showmax.