The National Youth Commission (NYC) on Sunday said an institution should be established to address shortcomings in the implementation of youth development programmes in South Africa.
”There is a lack of synergy between policy development and implementation. And, while the National Youth Development Policy Framework provides for the National Youth Commission to monitor development, there is no provision for recourse in case certain implementing agencies fail to comply,” the commission’s Monde
Mkalipi said.
Mkalipi said a Youth Development Agency (YDA) would be responsible for policy and interventions, funding and implementation as well as monitoring.
”The YDA will collapse the functions of the NYC to constitute such a youth development agency to bridge the gap between policy development and implementation,” he said.
Other YDA responsibilities would be:
- to respond to high youth unemployment;
- to empower youth through skills development; and
- to cut across all spheres of government to pursue common youth development policies.
Mkalipi said after Cabinet’s instruction last year to review the National Youth Policy Development Framework, it conducted research on the approach adopted by the government to address the needs of the youth in the post-apartheid era.
The study acknowledged the successes in setting up youth institutions such as the NYC and the Umsobomvu Youth Fund.
Despite this, an integrated approach that eliminates disjuncture and tensions between policy development and implementation was needed. Also revealed in the study is a lack of monitoring and evaluation of programmes implemented to advance youth development.
The document compiled out of the study is expected to be discussed at the National Youth Convention taking place in June. – Sapa