Le rona re batho: The state of young people in the Northern Cape

In this special Youth Day feature, Mogomotsi Motshegwe - youth leader, political science lecturer, and advocate for civic participation reflects on the state of young people in the Northern Cape.

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His piece introduces a series of stories from 10 young voices across the province, available in full on the DFA website.

LAST year, while travelling to Johannesburg, I had a conversation with a man that has never left me. He told me he had once lived in Kimberley, and what struck him most during his time there was witnessing - for the first time in his life - so many young people, including children, openly consuming alcohol. He spoke with heartbreak in his voice. That conversation stayed with me. It raised questions about the state of young people in our province questions about family dynamics, intergenerational poverty, and the neglect of township development.

As June 16 approaches, we'll once again hear speeches filled with grand promises: politicians pledging to fund youth businesses, claiming jobs are coming, and reminding us rehearsed and robotic - that "young people are the future". But the truth is this: the Northern Cape is failing its youth, and those in power seem unmoved.

While the youth of 1976 bravely fought the apartheid regime for freedom, justice, and access to quality education, 49 years later our fight has shifted - but it is no less urgent. We are now fighting unemployment, inequality, poverty, and systemic neglect. And the numbers keep rising.

According to the latest Stats SA report, South Africa's youth unemployment rate stands at a staggering 46.1%. In the Northern Cape, there has been a recorded decline of 12,000 jobs, worsening an already fragile provincial economy.