Reflections on challenges to Youth Development: Lessons from Ward Youth Officers in Hurungwe district.

Abstract

Zimbabwe is a youthful country and there is a growing recognition of the need to prioritize youth development. This stems from the realization that youth have been entangled in a complex web of socio-economic challenges and disenfranchised of opportunities that can transform their lives. In the previous decades, a number of policy blueprints and national youth development initiatives have been put in place. However, all these efforts have marginally contributed to positive youth development in Zimbabwe and Hurungwe district in particular. This study therefore sought to take reflective analysis of the challenges to youth development when Ward Youth Officers under the Ministry of Youth, Indigenization and Economic Empowerment facilitated youth work between 2009 and 2018. In 2018 however a number of ward youth officers were relieved of their duties nationwide as government’s transformative effort to rationalize the civil service. The study was conducted in six selected rural and urban wards. It was guided by the youth development framework. The study employed a qualitative methodology and a case study research design. Purposive sampling technique was used to identify the youth, key informants and other key stakeholders. Key informant interviews and semi structured interviews were used for data collection. The study found that youth development challenges were as a result of the politicization of youth work, lack of professionalism, resource constraints, and poor monitoring mechanisms in the district. The study recommends the depoliticization of youth work, improved professionalism through capacity building, ensuring adequate resources, and enhancing monitoring systems to improve the overall effectiveness of youth development initiatives in the district.

Keywords: Youth, youth development, youth work, politicization, professionalism.

DOI: 10.7176/DCS/15-1-02

Publication date: January 31^st 2025