President of the Republic of South Africa, His Excellency Mr. J.G. Zuma,

Minister in the Presidency for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, Mr. Jeff Radebe,

Minister of Arts and Culture, Mr. Nathi Mthethwa,

Deputy Minister in the Presidency for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, Mr. Buti Manamela,

Deputy Minister of Communications, Mrs. Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams,

Deputy Executive Chairperson of the NYDA, Mr. Kenny Morolong and the Board of the NYDA,

President of the Pan African Youth Union, Ms. Francine Lumunya,

Premier of the Gauteng Province, Mr. David Makura,

Executive Mayor of Tshwane Metro Municipality, Councillor Ramokgopa,

Distinguished Guests,

Fellow South Africans,


The major factor of hope is the youth. In 1976, the youth of our country gave hope to a crying nation, struggling to break free from racial oppression. Today the hope of country lies once again in the youth to ensure peace and prosperity for all.

As young South Africans we must accept the responsibilities of today that go with the opportunities of today. The responsibility to end racism and all forms of discrimination. The responsibility to end poverty and class inequality. The responsibility to care for the elderly. The responsibility to ensure that our people have basic services. The responsibility to be educated, productive and contributing citizens. These are our responsibilities as the youth of today. We are pleased that more young leaders are in cabinet and parliament than ever before and we must salute them for leading us with great humility and idealism.

As the youth, we must talk about racism and we must end it. We must talk about class inequalities and we must end it. Let us not be swayed by the dictates of past generations and the divisive elements in our society. Let us make up our own minds and declare unequivocally that race and class shall be a thing of the past. The power of our diversity can only lead to greater socio-economic advances and more opportunities for all to prosper. Thus we must unite in action. In the lake of our democracy lurks the two-headed serpent of racism and tribalism. It is only when this poisonous serpent is destroyed and buried in the graveyard of Apartheid sins that we will truly experience the joy and pleasures of peace, freedom and democracy.

Government and the private sector have an equal responsibility to develop our youth. Every government department must implement a youth development programme. Every government department must have a youth directorate. Every local municipality must implement a Youth Build Infrastructure Development Programme to train young artisans. The private sector must boldly invest in youth and fulfill youth development programmes for the empowerment of our youth.

Since inception in 2009, the National Youth Development Agency has assisted more than 6 million young South Africans with some kind of product or service to better their lives. The NYDA Business Grant Programme for youth-owned micro enterprises has been a great success and the Solomon Mahlangu Scholarship continues to promote a culture of excellence by rewarding poor and rural youth who excel in their studies.

As the NYDA, will continue to prioritise education and entrepreneurship programmes. We remain focused on our mandate to mainstream youth development into society and to facilitate youth development with all sectors of society. In this way youth development is becoming the business of all social partners. We will move with speed to develop the Integrated Youth Development Strategy for the implementation of the National Youth Policy 2020. This policy will provide the guiding framework for all social partners on matters of youth development. We will work tirelessly to ensure that a minimum of 1 million young South Africans enroll onto National Youth Service Programmes by 2020. By so doing, we will make community service fashionable amongst the youth of our country.

In celebrating 60 years of the freedom charter we must celebrate the progress made in opening the doors of learning and culture for all. As we do so, we must acknowledge that many deserving young people still struggle to access education and higher education in particular. We must celebrate the great strides we have made in promoting a culture of entrepreneurship amongst the youth of today whilst we acknowledge that many young aspiring and established entrepreneurs still lack the means to be job creators and future captains of industry. We must celebrate the defeat of the Apartheid regime and in doing so we must acknowledge that much more needs to be done for the gains of democracy to be felt by the toiling masses of our country.

Former President Nelson Mandela once said, "I have walked that long road to freedom. I have tried not to falter; I have made mistakes along the way. But I have discovered the secret that after climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb. I have taken a moment here to rest, to steal a view of the glorious vista that surrounds me, to look back on the distance I have come. But I can rest only for a moment, for with freedom comes responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk is not yet ended."

Let us be like Madiba and continue the long walk to peace and plenty for all.

I thank you.