Zimbabwe's 'Peak Youth' generation must be recognised

When we talk about young people in Zimbabwe we often talk about the problems that get linked to youth: unemployment, underemployment or loose morality.

In our country, the median age of our population is 20.35 . But this will not carry on forever, and we are not alone in that. We are part of an interconnected world, which is passing a major statistical milestone in human history this International Youth Day 2016. It is the last time in the planet's history that more people will be under 30 rather than older: right now we are living in the era of 'peak youth'. The total number of young people in the world is starting to plateau. Today, we have the largest global youth population in history, and this mass will remain for several decades before beginning to shrink later this century. What does this mean for us here, and for the world?

First, we need to change the way we think about youth. The UN counts those 1.8 billion as youth because they are 15 to 24 years old, but this definition is changing. The transition to adulthood is being stretched all over the world including Zimbabwe, as young people are still waiting to have a decent job, place to live or their own family will recognise. The power of youth is that they are neither dependent children nor fully independent adults. Young people are a vital group facing huge personal challenges, challenges on which society collectively succeeds or fails. Youth is not an age bracket; it is the passing from dependency to independence. It is a transition full of potential.

Second, we need to change the way we think about what youth can do. This will happen within the lifetimes of many of us today. World leaders, including our own leader H.E President Robert Gabriel Mugabe have set themselves historic Global Goals to end poverty, inequality and climate change by 2030, so this simple fact has huge ramifications. Without the Youth Power of a generation that is 1.8 billion strong and will make sure those promises are kept, that better world will not be achieved for any generation. I have seen an example of what young people can do to develop our country positively already, at Restless Development I see every day committed young people volunteering for a period of between three to eight months in rural communities. They work and support other young people to improve their lives, give them information about their health and be part of development processes in their own communities. I have seen young people actively participate at high level events, feeding into the development of Global Goals and now working towards supporting the implementation and monitoring of these goals. We need to continue to accord young people the same platforms but at the same time ensuring that they are genuinely participating and their views being taken seriously.

Finally, we need to change our assumptions about what young people want. So many of those stereotypes about young people in come from assuming that what they want is either to change things in a way that is a threat to society, or that they are so apathetic they do not want anything at all. When my agency Restless Development asked young people to survey thousands of other young people, we found that was not the case at all, and that young people prioritised having a voice, they wanted a decent living that contributed to their society, they wanted sexual rights to ensure their health and freedom from discrimination, and they wanted to be able to show leadership in preventing and solving our biggest challenges. But most of all, they wanted to show they can, and are already, leading.

If we change the way we think about youth, if we change the way we talk about young people, if we change the way that all ages can participate in our decision making processes, then we will find that young people are there to support our development efforts for the better. This moment of 'Peak Youth' can be a historic opportunity for that positive change for the world and Zimbabwe as a whole.  

Farai Muronzi, is Country Director, of Restless Development Zimbabwe