Youth Peace Building Programmes in Masvingo’s High Density Suburbs: Zimbabwe

Abstract

Challenges facing the youth in Zimbabwe call for concerted efforts by all youth related organizations to find ways of addressing them. Youth susceptibility is exacerbated by poverty and unemployment. This study is calling for strengthened efforts for coming up with youth peace building programmes that will reduce risky behaviours in the ancient city of Masvingo. Politicians and sugar daddies take advantage of the youth’s desperate situation to lure them into electioneering and prostitution. It is from this background that this study evaluated current peace building programmes being pursued in the high density suburbs namely, Mucheke (A, B, C&D), Runyararo west, Kwambudzi, Rujeko and the newly established Victoria range. The study explores attempts by non-governmental organizations in trying to address these acknowledged challenges among the youth. The study was underpinned by Lederach’s structural violence theory. The data was elicited from secondary sources. The outcome of this study demonstrated the need for more of such programmes to be carried out as the youths in these high density suburbs were reeling under multi-faced conflicts. These conflicts are precipitated by the fundamental causes such as poverty, unemployment, peer pressure and alcohol abuse as well as the unfulfilled needs such as security, freedom and participation. The paper recommends the nongovernmental organizations working with the youths to combine their efforts and resources in order to cover a wider cross section of the youths in both urban centres and elsewhere in the country to ensure the youth are empowered to cope with incidences of exploitation, manipulation and disenfranchisement during election periods.

Keywords: Youths, Peacebuilding, HIV and AIDS, programmes, Conflict, disenfranchisement