Youth Campaign faults Chakwera’s lack of solid plan on 1 million jobs creation

The Youth Decide Campaign has said President Lazarus Chakwera has excluded the capable youths in his public appointments and that his administration’s agenda is not clear “even after 100 days.”

This was stated by the grouping when it presented its assessment of Chakwera’s first 100 days in office on Saturday.

The youth claimed the job creation agenda has toned down and urged the government to rise above rhetoric.

Speaking during a news conference in Mzuzu, the campaign’s leader Charles Kajoloweka said the new administration lacks a clear agenda on youths and a solid plan on the creation of one million jobs in a year.

“There is a lack of clear Terms of Reference for measuring performance of Cabinet ministers or ministries. We run the risk of mistaking trivia for achievement.

“Overall, the Tonse agenda on the youth us not clear even after 100 days,” reads the report in part.

A member of the campaign, Vincent Kumwenda added: “We don’t have a clear agenda that the Tonse government is championing especially for the young people. There is no clear manifesto that the Tonse government is pushing.”

Agatha Silungwe of the Network for Youth Development, said the purpose and rebranding of Malawi Enterprise Development Fund (Medf) to National Economic Empowerment Fund (Neef) are not clear.

“It seems more of a political branding than the anticipated reforms,” she said.

Silungwe said there were no consultations with key stakeholders, including the youth sector, in the rebranding.

The grouping has however observed that there is a silver lining with the government over increased accessibility and openness but also reduced abuse of youth for political events.

Minister of Youth and Sports Ulemu Msungama has since taken to his Facebook page to outline Chakwera’s achievements in the first 100 days of office including business skills training for about 406 youth, continuation of the government internship programme, structural expansion of technical community colleges and a review of the National Youth Policy.

Chakwera, 65, became Malawi’s 6th President after  the Tonse Alliance, a group of nine opposition parties that he and Vice-President Saulos Chilima forged to defeat one-term president Peter Mutharika.