National Youth Week April 30 to May 6, 2006
As young people, through the Malawi National Youth Dialogue a project on advocacy and empowerment, we are submitting a proposal to the people of Malawi to host a National Youth Week from the 30th April to 6th May 2006.
During this period, the young Malawians in all 29 districts will be mobilised through youth organisations, schools and religious institutions to volunteer community work, as a gesture of patriotism and also ownership of community development.
This process will stimulate young people in local communities to be part of self help projects voluntarily at the same time instilled with the spirit of patriotism to defend the interest of the nation first by supporting local development.
This is an initiative of the young people to mobilise each other and voluntary identify projects in various communities that we can work on during the stated week.
The event has no political, religious or particular target grouping setting, but asking young people, from young professionals in offices to young farmers in the garden. The programme will be run on voluntary and willing basis.
Since multi-party democracy came into Malawi, young people have been viewed negatively in most spheres of development. In Education, examinations results have not been encouraging. In politics, they have been labelled as ‘young demons’ especially between 1999 to 2003. The same applied during the one party regime.
The National Youth Week will therefore be celebrating the power of young people in a different way. The power to be enthusiastically part of National development. The power of young people to use their energies for the community self help initiatives. This is the power that young Malawians posses.
Malawi Young people have built an impressive image in the fields of HIV and Aids awareness, Environmental Conservations and Human Rights and Good Governance. There are more than 70 registered Youth NGO’s in Malawi, close to 400 Community based organisations and more that 3,000 youth clubs.
The Youth Week will target at least achieving 5000 community projects in the fields of maintenance of road network, bridges, cleaning of Hospitals, Schools and other public service facilities.
Other projects to be tackled during the week including building Community Centres, Orphan’s support centres, donating relief items to the sick, the elderly and the poor and young professionals will be encouraged to undertake role model tours in schools and other public places to motivate many hundreds rural youth to be actively involved in education.
In awareness, the Young people of Malawi will use this week to renounce Child Labour, Violence and Sexual abuse of young females, Child Trafficking, promotion and protection of the girl Child, increase awareness on HIV and Aids, dangers of Drug and Substance abuse and also participation of young people in implementation of the National Economic Growth Strategy, Malawi Rural Development Fund, Decentralisation and Local Assemblies, Malawi Social Action Fund and Millennium Developmental Goals.
Official opening: 30th April 2006 Kamuzu Stadium, Blantyre
The events will start at the Blantyre Clock Tower, with ‘Run a Mile for Food’ fundraising sponsored run. We expect the Guest of Honour accompanied by the Honourable Minister of Youth, Cabinet Ministers, and Opposition party leaders; including Religious and Civil Society will take part in the run to Kamuzu Stadium.
In front of the group will be a National Unity torch, symbolising a united nation working for the future. All proceeds to the run will be for Orphans, Child headed households and young girls victims of various forms of abuse and harassment.
At the gates of Kamuzu Stadium, the Guest of Honour shall receive a National Unity torch and with it alongside all other national leaders invited, will lit 29 torches each representing a district in Malawi.
Thereafter, there will be a National Youth Rally, a showcase of development that has taken in Malawi since 1964. The youth rally will also celebrate the lives of our State President His Excellency Dr. Bingu wa Mutharika and also of his predecessors Dr. Bakili Muluzi and the late Ngwazi Kamuzu Banda.
Young people drawn from the City of Blantyre will be trained in gymnastics, aerobics and displays after school hours and the work in communities during the week will also be done after school hours.
Appeal
The Malawi National Youth Dialogue has sent hundreds of letters appealing for moral, material and financial support with an estimated cost of K8.5 million.
We wish to appeal to all people of goodwill, that for long have been concerned with the future of this nation to come up and support the programme.
The National Youth Week is the only time, we can train young Malawians to become patriots and responsible citizens within their communities at the country as a whole.
Incidents of vandalism of public property, criminal activities and lack of self help spirit require a strategic national approach to move young people to own their communities.
President of the United States John F. Kennedy, challenged in his statement; “The future of any nation is measured by the present prospects of its youth.”Endquote. As parents, guardians and responsible citizens, we can all agree that the present prospects of young Malawians leaves a lot to be desired.
All donations or requests for further information on the project can be channelled through:
The National Coordinator
2006 National Youth Week project
Malawi National Youth Dialogue
P.O Box 1568
LILONGWE
Tel: 01 772 248
Fax: 01 770 680
Email: kmunthali@yahoo.com or malawinationalyouthdialogue@yahoo.ca
Yours in Youth Service,
Kondwani Bell Munthali
National Representative to the Commonwealth Youth Programme
Coordinator- Malawi National Youth Dialogue
