SPORTS MINISTER WORKING ON EASY ACCESS OF YOUTH FUND

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By Ntokozo Magongo

MBABANE – The Ministry of Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs is working on the Youth Fund regulations, which will make it easier for the young people to access the Fund in order to start and grow their businesses.

Minister of Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs Bongani Nzima said this when addressing the Senate Portfolio Committee during the induction workshop at Happy Valley Hotel, Ezulwini today (Thursday, August 8, 2024).

Nzima said they were aware that the nation at large, have questions and concerns on the work of the Youth Enterprise Revolving Fund (YERF) and they agree that the Fund should be assisting more young people than the numbers they were currently have now.

The Youth Fund is a business support mechanism established for Eswatini youth between the ages of 18 – 35 years.

“We are working with the Attorney General’s office to bring reviewed fund regulations to Parliament and we hope that these regulations, once adopted, will make it easier for our young people to access the fund in order to start and grow their businesses.

The Fund has also decentralised its services and is now found in all four regions of the country while also introducing a continuous online application platform.

The Fund regularly conducts business training workshops in the various Tinkhundla and we believe that these measures, combined, will greatly improve the performance of the Fund, and most importantly, lead to a thriving youth-business sector in Eswatini,” he said.

He then requested the Portfolio Committee to make suggestions, critique and guide them over the course of the workshop.

This is what we expect of you because we know that what you speak are the sentiments of our country which we all serve. We want to depart this workshop as a solidified unit. We are one team, mandated to change the lives of our young people. Let us work together to deliver on this mandate,” he concluded.

The Minister then announced that the workshop was officially opened.

SPORTS MINISTER PLEADS FOR SUPPORT ON SPORTS, ARTS, CULTURE BILLS

By Ntokozo Magongo

MBABANE – Minister of Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs Bongani Nzima pleads for support from the Senate Portfolio Committee when tabling the National Sports Bill, National Arts and Culture Bills in Parliament.

He said the bills had the immense potential to transform the lives of our young people, offering them rewarding careers and boosting the country’s economy. This was during the opening of the Senate Portfolio Committee Induction Workshop at Happy Valley Hotel, Ezulwini on Thursday (August 8, 2024).

“The National Sports Bill and National Arts and Culture Bill are crucial to the realisation of this goal and we hope that you, as our Portfolio Committee, will support us when we bring them to Parliament, something we hope will happen in the not so distant future,” he said.

The Minister said based on these past nine months or so that they have worked together, he can boldly say the country had the best Portfolio Committee of all Government Ministries. “Since assuming your positions in this esteemed Committee, you have supported us diligently, while offering us crucial advice as we work together to bring positive change to the lives of our young people and develop the sports and arts sectors in our beloved Kingdom,” he said.

Nzima said they were happy to be joined by the Committee during the launch of the inaugural Tinkhundla National Talent Search Competition.

He added the Ministry is seized with the responsibility of creating a conducive environment for young people to thrive and lead decent and sustainable, high quality lives. He said primarily, they aim to achieve this by developing the sports and arts sectors while also providing our business-inclined youth with tailor made entrepreneurship support.

“In a country where over 70 percent of the population is below the age of 35 years, our work is massive. One of our key goals over the next few years is to streamline youth programming in the country, ensuring that both Government and non-governmental partners work towards shared goals, without duplicating each other’s work.

This will ensure that our limited resources have maximum impact on the lives of our youth. It is also our plan to scale up efforts towards the professionalisation of the sports and arts sectors,” he said.

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