13 Sep 2023

The aim of engaging the youth on the National Budget Youth Pitso was to give them an opportunity to contribute to the 2024/2025 National Budget.  

As such, as part of the National Budget consultation process, Minister of Finance, Ms Peggy Serame hosted a stakeholder engagement day with youth on Tuesday at Mahalapye Community Hall, themed #mybudget, #yourbudget, #ourbudget.

Ms Serame said the 2024/2025 National Budget process was underway to provide Batswana with an opportunity to contribute to the National Budget, therefore the youth should have a say on the budget.

She said youth friendly services were critical to promoting youth inclusion across all sectors of the economy.

Officially opening the day, Ms Serame said youth projects underscored the importance of facilitating them to venture into sectors of the economy.

She said the youth constituted the majority of the population, hence the need for government to facilitate them towards economic prosperity to improve their livelihoods.

She said government represented the interests of the youth in their quest to realise their potential.

Ms Serame said government continued to come up with poverty eradication interventions, hence the need to legislate instruments that support the youth.

She added that agriculture was one of the key areas government had invested in, which young people should venture into and make use of facilities constructed to develop the sector.

“The Budget Speech focuses on interventions aimed at promoting economic growth and diversification in the country as they are critical in addressing the persistent challenges of unemployment, income inequality and poverty, so the youth should contribute to budget by coming up with new ideas,” she said.

Therefore, she said government would continue to allocate significant budgetary resources to human capital and physical infrastructure development, which is in recognition of their importance in improving their productivity and competitiveness, and ultimately increasing economic growth and diversification.

The Minister indicated that to achieve the goals of promoting economic growth and diversification, government would continue to adopt appropriate policies and strategies and make substantial budgetary allocations to human capital and physical infrastructure development in recognition of their importance in improving productivity and competitiveness.

However, she noted that the role of government in promoting growth in the country was that of  a facilitator, through the provision of a conducive environment for efficient operations of the private sector, which should be the engine of growth.

She noted that government had strategies in place to empower young people in the construction industry in order to capacitate them to have a competitive edge.

Ms Serame, however, said government would not exempt young people when it came to delivery of quality projects.

Some of the youth who participated at the event said it was important for young people to avoid rural-urban migration because opportunities were abound in remote areas, requesting government to increase funds for the Youth Development Fund (YDF) to cater for the many youth in rural areas, most of whom were graduates.

They noted that young people funded under YDF in the district had demonstrated potential in agriculture and the small stock sector, therefore they needed monitoring and needed the government to drill boreholes for them.

“All projects can transform livelihoods of young people. There are many opportunities in remote areas.

Let’s avoid rural-urban migration and venture into these sectors. Opportunities are not only available in cities and towns,” said a youthful Mr Emmauel Tjienda.

Mr Tjienda suggested that the budget should include the construction of serviced industrial sites where the youth could open their businesses.

Mr Faola Ramokapane said most of the youth were knowledgeable about new technology.

He requested the ministry to include projects that dealt with technologies and improved the Internet when drawing up the budget.

Mr Abednego Molome, who is also passionate about agriculture, encouraged row planting and advised the Ministry of Agriculture  to educate farmers on how to farm appropriately to produce more food to feed themselves and sell the rest.

Mr Gofaone Tshiamiso from Mmaphashalala, who is a small stock owner, also supported agriculture, saying without food there was no life.

He encouraged the youth to transform agriculture into business, requesting government to assist with starter funds.

Member of Parliament for Mahalapye West, Mr David Tshere, was delighted that the Ministry of Finance hosted a National Budget Youth Pitso in Mahalapye for the first time in the country.  

The MP encouraged the youth in Mahalapye to look for opportunities in various sectors after the national budget presentation.  ENDS