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7 May 2009

I have the pleasure of informing you that as of 8 April 2009, The President of South Africa has authorised the signing of the Africa Youth Charter (AYC) by South Africa. This was after both houses in Parliament (National Assembly and National Council of Provinces) approved that the Charter be signed and ratified.

The African Youth Charter is a continental political and legal document which serves as a strategic framework that gives direction for youth empowerment and development at continental, regional and national levels. It is inline with the efforts of the African Union (AU) that seeks to provide an avenue for effective youth participation in development processes; strengthen continental and regional relations; and to prioritise youth development on the African Union's development agenda. It is also part of the efforts to implement the African Union Commission's (AUC) Horison Strategy (2004 to 2007).

At the Second Ordinary Session of the Conference of African Union Ministers in Charge of Youth (COMY II), held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in 2007; a call was made for all Heads of State to note and enter into relevant national legal processes for the signature and ratification of the Charter.

The Charter was endorsed by Heads of State in July 2006 and was officially launched in November 2006 at the African Development Forum 5th Edition (ADF-V). In order for the Charter to come into force, it has to be ratified by 15 member states.

To date, the Charter has only been signed and ratified by 31 and 13 member states respectively. South Africa will therefore become the 14th member state to sign. The delay in finalising this process is mostly attributed to necessary internal procedures followed of presenting the Charter to the State Law Advisors thus ensuring consistency with domestic policies and laws.

Now that the Charter has been signed, the Youth Desk in the Presidency will facilitate administrative processes to ensure ratification and submission of the Charter to the African Union Legal Department.

In South Africa, the Charter will be implemented within the context of the National Youth Policy (NYP) 2009-2014 which was recently approved by government. The NYP is a national policy framework whose development was largely driven by the country's youth sector itself.

It encapsulates the principles and processes that will guide the implementation of interventions to address issues of education, health, economic participation, and social cohesion.

Related to the implementation of the NYP, is the establishment of the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA). Members of the Agency's board were recently appointed and were announced on 30 April 2009.

The NYDA is to be formally launched during the month of June 2009 and comes out of the merger of the country's two leading youth development institutions: the National Youth Commission (NYC) and Umsobomvu Youth Fund (UYF). The agency will focus on intensifying implementation of youth development interventions through broadening access, maximising and accelerating impact, strengthening the youth development machinery, sustaining youth development as a national priority, and ensuring seamless integration of youth development.

The implementation of the Charter (through the NYP), will therefore rest largely with the NYDA, in partnership with the rest of government, civil society organizations, and social partners.

In conclusion, we envision that there will be communication implications which include: launching of the Charter nationally; translation of the Charter into local languages and distribution to relevant stakeholders; utilisation of different kinds of media (TV, radio, newspapers, newsletters, workshops, meetings etc.) for the purpose of popularising the Charter; and implementation of the National Youth Policy which already caters the provision of this Charter.

I would like to thank the National Youth Commission and the Youth Desk in the Presidency for ensuring signature of the Charter by the Republic of South Africa.

Enquiries:
Bernice Hlagala
Cell: 079 892 4828

Issued by: The Presidency
7 May 2009
Source: The Presidency (http://www.thepresidency.gov.za)