Minister of Basic Education Siviwe Gwarube has called on young people to take their rightful place in their communities and lead the transformation of the country.
This emerged at a three-day Learner Leadership Summit at the Johannesburg City Council Chambers, where Gwarube was delivering the keynote address.
Gwarube says young people are the backbone of the community that will drive change on African soil.
“Young people are saying to leaders in this country, we are here and we are not just an afterthought. I want to encourage you to keep using your voice to connect with what happens at schools and what’s needed in your communities. Part of the reason why we have a lack of active citizens in South Africa, is because we believe that young people, for some reason, must be insulated from the ideas of democracy and protecting our institutional democracy or being active citizens, and we wait for them to turn 18 before having the conversation with them about the kind of country they want to build.”
Basic Education Minister leads youth leadership summit
