Abstract
Over the years, youth participation in local decision-making across Africa has been minimal, despite the existence of enabling human rights frameworks on youth participation as well as institutions such as junior councils. This research aimed to compare the efficacy of Zimbabwe’s urban and rural junior councils in enhancing youth participation in local governance, which in turn would promote reform of the current participation frameworks, the realisation of children’s rights and ultimately productive community development. This paper is a product of qualitative research, combining desk research and key informant interviews with 22 council and ministry officials as well as eight focus group discussions with sitting and former junior councillors in Harare, Bulawayo, Bindura, Mutare, Masvingo, Rushinga, Makonde and Mbire. It was found that junior councils lacked adequate funding and technical support, resulting in tokenistic participation in local governance. Their legal status is unclear as both government ministries and local governments claim ownership. The research findings suggest that junior councils could be strengthened through the enactment of a specific legal framework to regulate their activities.
Highlights
The African Union’s Agenda 2063 (African Union Commission 2015) and the African Youth Charter (African Union Commission 2006) both present frameworks which aim to fundamentally reinvigorate and prioritise youth participation in Africa’s contemporary and future development dynamics
From the review of literature and findings uncovered by this study, it can be concluded that youth participation in governance through junior councils in Zimbabwe is still at the tokenistic stage of Hart’s ladder of participation
While all the junior councils surveyed experienced a range of obstacles to their successful operation, the problems were especially acute in rural areas where resources are scarce, communications are often poor, and junior councils have only recently been established
Summary
The African Union’s Agenda 2063 (African Union Commission 2015) and the African Youth Charter (African Union Commission 2006) both present frameworks which aim to fundamentally reinvigorate and prioritise youth participation in Africa’s contemporary and future development dynamics. Aspirations 48 and 58 of Agenda 2063 provide that: All the citizens of Africa will be actively involved in decision-making in all aspects of development, including social, economic, political and environmental. It is estimated that Africa has approximately 226 million youths, aged between 15 to 24 years, constituting 20% of her population Projections show that this proportion is likely to grow to 42% by 2030 (United Nations 2017). A key challenge, has been the limited space available for youth to influence and participate in decision-making at the local level – despite the fact that restricted participation of youths in the socioeconomic activities of their communities is contrary to the principles of democracy, as enshrined in the African Union Agenda 2063 (Kirby and Bryson 2002)
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