Issued by: Office of the Deputy President
RECOMMENDATIONS TAKE SA YOUTH ONE STEP CLOSER TO NATIONAL SERVICE
"The National Youth Commission will prepare a detailed Green Paper on National Youth Service Programme... in close consultation with key stakeholders" Section 8.1.4, National Youth Policy.
PRETORIA - The technical task team of youth development and service specialists appointed to work in conjunction with the National Youth Commission in developing a Green Paper on National Youth Service has recommended that pilot programmes begin as early as 1999. Anticipating a launch of a fully-fledged National Youth Service in the year 2000, the team proposes that a limited number of projects be implemented in 1999 "to put in place the medium-term institutional arrangements".
Releasing the Green Paper at a press conference this morning. NYC Chair Mahlengi Bhengu said the team had recommended clearly that National Youth Service become a reality for South African youth over the next three years. "The Task Team has concurred with the NYC's long-held view that young people have a valuable role to play in the development of our country and that a well-structured national youth service programme could enable them to do so in a way which yields clear benefits to their own personal and career development as well," she said. Bhengu added the Task Team had fulfilled all the research and consultation requirements to ensure that recommendations added significant weight to the call by 167 national youth organisations last year that the NYC take forward the process of developing a National Service for South African youth.
The Green Paper partly defines National Youth Service as "a structured entity... established by government to provide various types of support to a wide diversity of youth programmes operating within the framework of service, learning and development". As such, it does not anticipate National Service as a singular programme of activity but incorporative of a wide range of projects and activities falling within broadly accredited criteria falling under the administrative, funding an co-ordinating support of a National Youth Service administrative body.
The Task Team is equally of the view that service has to be applied in different ways to different categories of youth, taking into account the varying circumstances in which young people find themselves. The Green Paper identifies four key target groups as beneficiaries of National Youth Service: higher education students, further education and training students, unemployed young people and youth in conflict with the law. The proposal recommends a mixed approach be initially adopted towards participation, making it compulsory in certain areas (e.g. as part of the education curriculum) and voluntary in others.
The Green Paper finds that a high level of national, provincial and local co-ordination involving a broad range of agencies and institutions will be required to effectively implement National Youth Service so as to meet its youth development objectives. Given the cross-cutting nature of the programme. the Green Paper recommends that ultimate responsibility for putting in place the necessary institutional arrangements needs to reside with the Office of the President and the National Youth Commission. Parallel to the practical process of institutional realignment, it is recommended that the NYC conclude the Green Paper phase by developing a White Paper and related legislation by October 1999.
The Green Paper arises from a key mandate to the National Youth Commission (NYC) from the 1997 National Youth Summit. In terms of the mandate, the NYC appointed a National Youth Service Technical Task Team in January 1998 to begin investigating the feasibility of a fully-fledged National Youth Service Programme for South Africa. Included in the team were the University of Pretoria's Professor Christof Heyns, who has been involved in South African Student Volunteers Organisations. Penny Foley from the Joint Enrichment Project and renowned youth service consultants and authors, Ragmat Omar and Helene Perhold.
Earlier this year, the South African Graduate Development Association (SAGDA) voiced its strong support for the NYC's process saying it had been consultative and ultimately in the interests of its members.
Green Paper Executive Summary can be obtained from the number below.
For further information please do not hesitate to contact the NYC's Paul Johnson directly on Cell/Voicemail 082 771 8465.
Issued by: Monde Mkalipi NYC Communications 2 November