WHY YOUTH AND CIVIC ENGAGEMENT NOW?
Ally Seif Ramadhani
Human Rights Lawyer | Child Rights Champion | Youth Rights Advocate |Access to Justice |Peace Building Agent |Civic Leadership & Democratic Governance | Fellow @ YALI (RLC), @FES - YLF, @CSP | Board Member @ACP
WHY YOUTH AND CIVIC ENGAGEMENT NOW..? ‘A call for joint efforts toward ensuring meaningful youth participation during elections in Tanzania: General Lessons and Best Practices.’
Author: Ally Seif Ramadhani
ABSTRACT
Meaningful youth participation in civic affairs such as elections has been a common cry among the youth in Tanzania since the beginning of 1990’s after the rebirth of multipartism system in the country. As one way of responding to that unanswered cry of the Tanzanian youth, this article makes a louder call to different stakeholders in and outside Tanzania to join their efforts toward facilitating meaningful youth engagement and participation in elections especially for the coming Local Government Election and General Election in 2024 and 2025 respectively.
By referring to different illustrations and best practices from common law jurisdiction, this article tries to explicate the meaning of youth, why the youth should be the major concern, what was and what is the situation of the youth engagement and participation in electoral processes, meaning of civic engagement and participation, reviewing existing policies and legal frameworks, giving the X-position of the paper and making a syllogistic conclusion.
It is the author’s belief that, this article will positively contribute to the reform of the existing legal and policy framework; approaches and strategies; programs, plans, practices and interventions of the government and its agencies, civil society organizations (CSOs), donors’ community, political parties, youth group(s) and all other development stakeholders and partners for the common good as we are holding together ahead to see; a just and equitable society where young men and young women as well as other people from other age-groups are fully empowered and have equal access to available opportunities only because; state machineries have respect to the rule of law, all government organs are working on check and balance system, majority young people have sufficient knowledge, information, accessibility, confidence and motivation on their rights, duties and responsibilities, whether it be civic, political, social, or cultural ones, that make them strongly enough to promote and protect democratic governance, rule of law, human dignity, inclusiveness and principles of equality.
Keywords:
Youth, Civic Engagement, Civic Participation, Meaningful, Participation, Election, Democratic Governance, Tanzania, Decision Making.
INTRODUCTION
There is no universally agreed international definition of the youth age group. As a respect to the global diversity, I find it vital to look for different definitions of ‘who are the youth’ before getting to the junctures of our consciousness in this article so that we make sure we are all sailing in the same boat. Referring to the United Nations (UN) since 1981, without prejudice to any other definitions made by Member States - defines ‘youth’ as those persons between the ages of 15 and 24 years.[1] Moreover, African Union Youth Charter (2006) defines youth or young people as every person between the ages of 15 and 35 years.[2] Furthermore, Commonwealth Youth Program (1973) defines youth or young people as persons between the age of 15 - 29 years.[3]
However, Tanzania under the National Youth Development Policy of 2007 adopts its definition from the African Union Youth Charter by stating that; youth in Tanzania shall be defined as young men and women from the age group of 15 to 35.
I restrict myself to extend our definition to programmatic purpose of different UN agencies and other development stakeholders who have also defined youth in their different viewpoints, age-range and status such as; adolescent (10-19), young people (10-24), youth 15-32 etc. Definition of youth perhaps changes with circumstances, especially with the changes in demographic, financial, economic and socio-cultural settings; however, the definition that uses 15- 24 age cohort as youth fairly serves its statistical purposes for assessing the needs of the young people and providing guidelines for youth development.[4]
Nevertheless, in this article the definition of 15-35 years as far as Tanzania is our case study will be prevailing in many contexts which explicitly target Tanzanian youth. Youth is thought to be a transition stage between childhood and adulthood, but it is a very challenging period of time when many significant life events occur and decisions are made.[5]
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Estimates indicate that young people between 15 and 24 years of age number 1.21 billion and account for 15.5 per cent of the global population. Projections suggest that the youth cohort will reach 1.29 billion (15.1 per cent of the world total) by 2030 and almost 1.34 billion (13.8 per cent of the overall population) by 2050 (United Nations, 2019c).[1]
By 2030—the target date for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that make up the 2030 Agenda—the number of youths is projected to have grown by 7 per cent, to nearly 1.3 billion.[2] While the current world population is 7.97 billion as of August 2022 according to the most recent United Nations estimates elaborated by Worldometer[3] ?then youth population is tremendous increasing to magnificent scale which should not be ignored that is why youth are our concern.
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[1] World Youth Report (2020) https://www.un.org/development/desa/youth/wp content/uploads/sites/21/2020/07/2020-World-Youth-Report-FULL-FINAL.pdf
Back to Tanzania as a case study, the current population of the United Republic of Tanzania is 63,377,520 with a median age of 18.0 years as of Thursday, August 25, 2022, based on Worldometer elaboration of the latest United Nations data.[1] Of the estimated 60 million people in Tanzania, more than 50 per cent are under 18 and over 70 percent are under 30.[2]
Young people are the most affected demographic when it comes to the world's rising socio-economic, political and environmental crises. Yet, they are also the best placed to lead the transition to a more equitable world. This is one of the key findings of the world's first Youth-Driven Recovery Plan developed by the World Economic Forum's Global Shapers Community, a network of 14,000 inspiring young people driving dialogue, action and change.[3]
Furthermore, regardless of being magnificent group in the community youth are faced by different challenges which hinder them to explore and utilize their fully potentials. Among major challenges facing youth in the global are; poor education and unemployment, poverty, mental health, digital illiteracy and limited access to internet, less involvement in decision-making processes, alcohol and drugs, anxiety and depression, bullying and cyberbullying, threat of HIV and AIDS and teen pregnancy.
In Tanzania youth are faced by different challenges including; limited knowledge about sexual and reproductive health and rights, harmful cultural practices such as FGM and child marriage, human trafficking, unemployment and underemployment, HIV/AIDS pandemic, poor quality education and inadequate training, restricted access to health services and information, drugs/substance abuse, Child Labour and exploitation, exclusion in the decision-making processes or lack of meaningful participation, poverty, mental health, and gender based violence (GBV).[4]
Henceforth, it is undisputable that youth have the creativity, the potential and the capacity to make change happen for themselves, for their communities, and for the rest of the world.
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[2] UNICEF – Tanzania. ‘Young people engagement: A priority for Tanzania Improving the lives of 10–24-year-old through a multisectoral lens’ https://www.unicef.org/tanzania/young-people-engagement-priority-tanzania
[4] Tanzania Human Rights Report (2021) https://humanrights.or.tz/en/resources-center
Conceptually, the term ‘youth’ or ‘young’ simply can be construed as; fully of energy, bright vision, smart-minded, accuracy, loyalty, boldness, curiosity, hardworking, or optimism. This is due to the fact that, where all other ‘supernatural’ factors remain constant, youth are expected to live longer than adults (people above the youth-age), hence the hope of tomorrow is belong the youth of today.
In 1790, Condorcet observed that every generation accuses itself of being less-civic minded than its predecessors. Perhaps that concern is always appropriate, because citizens are made, not born; it takes deliberate efforts to prepare young people to participate effectively and wisely in public life. In any case, we have specific reasons to be concerned about youth civic engagement today, including low scores on assessments of civic knowledge, weakening social trust, dropping rates of membership in traditional organizations, low and falling efficacy, and a long decline in voter turnout from 1972 to 2002.[1]
Notably before freedoms and independences, before getting to the 21st Century, young people are the one who were frontline in struggling for liberations in many countries in the globe. Young people were in frontline to do exploration and invention of the new worlds, young people were the one who suffered unmentioned sufferings, tortures, killings, imprisonments, and exiles. Young people were the one who participated to refine, design, reshape, plan, re-plan, building and rebuilding what now are popularly known as big nations, big cities, big industries, big enterprises, big political parties, big movements, and all things implying giantess look in this world today, and youth in Tanzania cannot be excluded from this living fact.
Tanzania Mainland (then Tanganyika) gained its Independence from Britain in 1961. The then Independence Constitution was crafted on the Westminster model. Vide the 1962 Republic Constitution, Tanganyika became a Republic. On the other hand, the Zanzibar Islands of Pemba and Unguja gained their independence from the Arab Sultanate following a revolution in January 1964. In April that same year, Tanganyika and Zanzibar united to form the United Republic of Tanzania and a Constitution for the United Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar (later the United Republic of Tanzania) was accordingly enacted.[2]
Unfortunately, after the finishing of that paramount work of bringing national freedoms into the place, finishing establishment of systems and infrastructures, young people were replaced, found to be threat to the ruling class then severely victimized, and later taken over. Young people became less involved and less considered in decision-making processes. Young people for decades have been systematically prevented from accessing available opportunities due to lack of information, bureaucratic systems, unpreparedness, and extremely poverty which led to the failure of majority youth to utilize their full potentials and realize their dreams as far as Tanzanian youth are of concern.
Until recently in the fall of 1990’s where youth in Tanzania[3] have started been peeped again with a grandmother’s eye by their national leadership system as any other better engaged youth in other global jurisdictions. This can be caused by increased youth population, increased use of technology, globalization and international diplomacy, which is well maintained by the United Nations as a chief custodian and other regional organs and bodies through a number of binding treaties which aim at improving democratic governance, transparency and accountability of the ruling classes to their nations and citizens.
Under the multiparty system, youth participate in various political organizations and in decision-making. However, currently there is no clearly defined system which prepares young men and women to take up leadership positions in the existing parties and government.[4]
Another challenge in political areas is for girls to emerge as leaders or representatives in decision making organs. According to the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania of 1977 as amended from time to time, any person who has the age of 18, male or female has the right to vote and to contest for leadership at certain levels. Effective and meaningful youth participation is required.[5]
Over the past two decades, youth civic engagement has acquired some prominence in research, policy and practice in many parts of the world. At the international level, the World Bank has identified the exercise of active citizenship as one of the most important activities for a healthy transition to adulthood for both the youth of today and the next generation.[6]
Initiatives such as that of having ‘National Youth Policies’ can be counted as one of the major milestones towards ensuring youth liberation from all oppressive, exploitative and discriminatory practices. The process of empowering youth, cutoff the oppressive chain and reviving the lost hope cannot possibly be done by one actor. It needs joint efforts of all key-actors such as; the government and its agencies, the youth, civil society organizations, religious and traditional organizations and groups, as well as support from other national and international development stakeholders to make the dream of youth come true.
Regarding the fact that Tanzania is expecting to hold its Local Government Election in 2024 and General Election in 2025 whereas these major elections matter a lot to the lives, future and destination of the people of the united republic, then it is important to start earlier thinking about ways to improve engagement and participation of those vulnerable groups including this group of youth who are the majority.
Furthermore, it worth to be noted that this will never be a one-night-work, rather it is a gradual and progressive realized mission which must start now, with mental liberation, adjustment of existing rigid systems and procedures so that to create favorable grounds for all social players including youth to access, utilize and effectively enjoy available social-economic and political opportunities such as participation in elections and decision-making processes.
All in all, young people believe that each of the fractures that have come to bear are manifestations of an underlying political problem. Concerns such as corruption, austerity and stale political leadership have become priorities for young people if they are to keep faith in the political system, as more young people hold faith in governance by a system of artificial intelligence than by a fellow human being. To curtail the problem, young people are calling on philanthropic donors to direct greater investments to programmes that help young progressive voices join government and become policy-makers.[7]
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[1] Youth Civic Engagement: An Institutional Turn (2006) https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED491132.pdf
[2] Compendium of Electoral Laws and Regulations of Tanzania; prepared by the judiciary of Tanzania with the support from the United Nations development Programme (UNDP) November, 2016.
[3] Tanzania is a United Republic, a Member State to East African Community (EAC), Southern African Development Community (SADC) and African Union (AU.)
[4] Tanzania National Youth Development Policy (2007)
[5] ibid
[6] The World Youth Report (2015) on Youth Civic Engagement https://www.un.org/development/desa/youth/wp-content/uploads/sites/21/2018/12/un_world_youth_report_youth_civic_engagement.pdf
[7]Davos Lab: Youth Recovery Plan, Insight Report (August, 2021) https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Davos_Lab_Youth_Recovery_Plan_2021.pdf
There are a hundred and a thousand definitions from the books and search engines when you are looking for the meaning of the term civic engagement. To shorten the story, currently there is no single, widely agreed-upon meaning for the term. However, the term can be defined based on the perspective and interests of the definer.[1] ?Civic engagement can be defined in different ways such as; Civic engagement as community service, Civic engagement as collective action, Civic engagement as political involvement and Civic engagement as social change.[2]
Civic engagement can therefore be referred to the ways in which citizens participate in the life of a community in order to improve conditions for others or to help shape the community’s future.[3] Moreover, civic engagement involves working to make a difference in the civic life of one’s community and developing the combination of knowledge, skills, values and motivation to make that difference. It means promoting the quality of life in a community, through both political and non-political processes.[4]
Hence, youth civic engagement can be defined as working to make a difference in the civic life of one’s community. It also involves developing the combination of knowledge, skills, values, and motivation to make that difference. These activities enrich the lives of youths and are socially beneficial to the community.[5]
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[1] What Do We Mean By “Civic Engagement”? Journal of Transformative Education Vol. 3 No. 3, July 2005 236-253 DOI: 10.1177/1541344605276792 ?2005 Sage Publications. https://www.unomaha.edu/international-studies-and-programs/_files/docs/adler-goggin-civic-engagement.pdf
[2] Ibid
[3] Ibid
[4] Hoekema, David & Ehrlich, Thomas. (2000). Civic Responsibility and Higher Education. Academe. 86. 79. 10.2307/40251931.
The term “meaningful” has increasingly been used by the international community to express an aspirational direction towards more inclusive decision-making processes.[1] The concept of ‘meaningful’ participation has evolved to become a conceptual reference point to describe a multifaceted set of elements to realize the tangible and urgent demands that women not only be present, but that their concerns are heard and taken on board, they have the opportunity to articulate their contributions and expertise, to ensure that gender perspective and analyses inform and shape peace processes, and that outcomes benefit the whole of society.[2] ?Meaningful (youth) participation means that; young people can participate on equal terms with adults, or work independently, in organizations as well as in all stages of programming and policy-making: design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation.[3]
Borrowing the wording of the UN-WOMEN report referred above and that definition developed by Youth Do It (YDI), ?meaningful participation does not only need presence of a particular person or group, but also to have equal terms in agreements, their concerns are to be heard and taken on board, those people or groups of people (i.e., youth) have the opportunity to articulate their contributions and expertise, to ensure that gender perspective and analyses inform and shape the particular processes (i.e., electoral process), and that outcomes benefit the whole of society while they are also participating in design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the plans, programs and project that matter to them.
Citizen participation is a key to effective democratic governance hence this gives light to this article to call for joint efforts to ensure youth as one among other citizens in Tanzania community have access to participate in democratic governance through electoral processes in Tanzania.
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[1] UN-WOMEN (2018) - Women’s Meaningful Participation in Negotiating Peace and the Implementation of Peace: Agreements Report of the Expert Group Meeting. https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/Library/Publications/2018/EGM-Womens-meaningful-participation-in-negotiating-peace-en.pdf
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[2] Ibid
The United Nations has long recognized that the imagination, ideals and energies of young people are vital for the continuing development of the societies in which they live.[1] Referring to the World Program of Action for Youth, an international strategy[2] which provides a policy framework and practical guidelines for national action and international support to improve the situation of young people. It contains proposals for action, aiming at fostering conditions and mechanisms to promote improved well-being and livelihoods among young people. In alphabetical order, the document set forth 15 youth priorities, whereas the tenth priority (or priority ‘J’) insisted on ‘full and effective participation of youth in the life of society and in decision-making.’
Though the proviso does not entail much on civic engagement but we can simply say there is good framework to start with on youth meaningful civic engagement and participation if could be fully taken into action by all member states including Tanzania as a case study.
The capacity for progress of our societies is based, among other elements, on their capacity to incorporate the contribution and responsibility of youth in the building and designing of the future. In addition to their intellectual contribution and their ability to mobilize support, they bring unique perspectives that need to be taken into account.[3]
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[2] Adopted by the UN in 1995, on the tenth anniversary of International Youth Year.
The African Youth Charter which is a policy framework for African states prescribes responsibilities to Member States for the development on youth, adopted at the AU- Member States’ Summit in Banjul in July 2006, it provides the Governments, Youth, Civil Society and International Partners with a continental framework, which underlines to the rights, duties and freedoms of youth. Hence the charter paves the way for the development of national programmes and strategic plans for their empowerment.
Secondly, the charter ensures the constructive involvement of youth in the development agenda of Africa and their effective participation in the debates and decision-making processes in the development of the continent. sets a framework to enable policy makers to mainstream Youth issues in all development policies and programmes. It thus provides a legal basis for ensuring Youth presence and participation in government structures and forums at national, regional and continental levels.
Thirdly, the Charter provides important guidelines and responsibilities of Member States for the empowerment of Youth in key strategic areas, namely Education and Skills Development, Poverty Eradication and Socio-economic Integration of Youth, Sustainable Livelihoods and Youth Employment, Health, Peace and Security, Law Enforcement, Sustainable Development and Protection of the Environment. It is expected that the execution of these guidelines would not only provide the youth with necessary tools for livelihood but also stem the flow of Africa’s most important resource to other parts of the world.
Finally, the Charter outlines the responsibilities of Youth to their own development and to their countries and continent. In other words, the rights embodied in the Charter are accompanied by responsibilities as well. The Youth cannot expect governments to empower them while they do the opposite by abusing themselves in various ways such as substance abuse. To be able to get maximum benefits from the implementation of the Charter it is expected that youth would also develop and promote the required self-discipline.
Article 11 of the Charter entails about ‘youth participation’ where it says; every young person shall have the right to participate in all spheres of society. States Parties shall;
‘Guarantee the participation of youth in parliament and other decision- making bodies in accordance with the prescribed laws; Facilitate the creation or strengthening of platforms for youth participation in decision-making at local, national, regional, and continental levels of governance; Ensure equal access to young men and young women to participate in decision-making and in fulfilling civic duties. Give priority to policies and programmes including youth advocacy and peer-to-peer programmes for marginalized youth, such as out-of-school and out of-work youth, to offer them the opportunity and motivation to re-integrate into mainstream society; Provide access to information such that young people become aware of their rights and of opportunities to participate in decision-making and civic life; Institute measures to professionalize youth work and introduce relevant training programmes in higher education and other such training institutions; Provide technical and financial support to build the institutional capacity of youth organizations; Institute policy and programmes of youth voluntarism at local, national, regional and international levels as an important form of youth participation and as a means of peer-to-peer training; provide access to information and services that will empower youth to become aware of their rights and responsibilities; Include youth representatives as part of delegations to ordinary sessions and other relevant meetings to broaden channels of communication and enhance the discussion of youth related issues ?’[1]
I am observantly driven by the whole provision of Article 11 (2), where if I have to mention I found it as a full package and touched all necessary angles which if addressed timely, appropriately and deliberately then youth in Africa as far as Tanzania is of concern would never have unanswered-cry on having a meaningful participation and engagement in civic affairs such as elections and decision-making bodies and processes.?
Moreover, African Union (AU) has developed an ‘Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want’[2] which is rooted in Pan-Africanism and African Renaissance, provides a robust framework for addressing past injustices and the realization of the 21st Century as the African Century. The ‘Agenda 2063’ has purposefully developed and highlighted seven (7) aspirations which among them includes; Aspiration #3 (an Africa of good governance, democracy, respect for human rights, justice and the rule of law;) and Aspiration #4 (an Africa, whose development is people-driven, relying on the potential of African people, especially its women and youth, and caring for children.)
Whereas the document under these two priorities insisted on;
Africa to have a universal culture of good governance, democratic values, gender equality, respect for human rights, justice and the rule of law. Be a continent where democratic values, culture, practices, universal principles of human rights, gender equality, justice and the rule of law are entrenched; and have capable institutions and transformative leadership in place at all levels. Africa will be a continent where the institutions are at the service of its people. Citizens will actively participate in the social, economic and political development and management. All the citizens of Africa will be actively involved in decision making in all aspects. Africa shall be an inclusive continent where no child, woman or man will be left behind or excluded, on the basis of gender, political affiliation, religion, ethnic affiliation, locality, age or other factors. The youth of Africa shall be socially, economically and politically empowered through the full implementation of the African Youth Charter. .[3]
To the best of my opinion, all these aspirations of ‘Agenda 2063’ in Africa and in Tanzania as well, will never happen and being practically possible if youth will not be part of the process. That can start by empowering them with adequate knowledge and expose them to the fair ground for having their meaningfully participation in elections and decision-making bodies for different roles.
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[1] Article 11 (2) (a), (b), (c), (d), (e), (f), (g) (h), (i) and (j).
[2] ‘Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want’
[3] ibid
In Tanzania, the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania of 1977 as amended, describes the United Republic as a democratic, secular and socialist state which adheres to multi-party democracy.[1] There are several legislations which are normally involved in elections in Tanzania such as the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania, the National Elections Act, the National Elections [Presidential and Parliamentary Elections] Regulations, the Local Authorities Act, Local Authorities [Councilors Elections] Regulations, Elections Expenses Act , and the Political Parties Act of 1992. In our discussion I will try in a very specific manner guided by the purpose of this article to only swim around the Constitution.
Article 5 (1) of the Constitution[2] states that; ‘every citizen of the Untied Republic who has attained the age of eighteen years is entitled to vote in any election held in Tanzania. This right shall be exercised in accordance with the sub-article (2), and of the other provisions of this Constitution and the law for the time being in force in Tanzania in relation to public elections.’
The constitution provides general right to ‘every citizen’ subject to attainment of eighteen years and other legal requirements as provided by other provisions of the constitution and legislations of the parliament. ?But still, the constitution has brought contradictory provisions related to youth group with no open intent, which impliedly means bad intent of the parliament to diminish youth spirit to get into decision bodies. To affirm this, welcome to read Article 67(1)(a) of the constitution which states that; ‘subject to the provisions contained in this Article, any person shall be qualified for election or appointment as a Member of Parliament if he is a citizen of the United Republic who has attained the age of twenty-one years and who can read and write in Kiswahili or English.’
So, if we bother to read this Article together with the Article 5(1) it does not bring any sense and it shows unclear vision of the statemen and women towards youth leadership future in Tanzania. Our questions might be; why the same person is allowed to vote (simply means ‘making decision’) when he/she is eighteen (18) years but is not allowed to hold that position until he gets to twenty-one (21) years? What was the intention of the parliamentarians? What was the intention of the statemen and women? Why have they maintained this position for years? Are they the youth? Should the youth vest trust on such kind of decision-makers? Some good people with bad motives might come to bring a challenge on this by invite the Tanzanian youth to read the provision of Article 39(1) (b)[3] but they should remember that, it is hard to understand this Article 39(1) (b) without first regarding Article 39 (1) (d)[4] ?which directly get you back to the basis of our question and discussion under Article 67(1)(a), and getting the why, we the youth, are keenly asking this now! ?
From my simple construction I can say that; the beautiful future of youth in Tanzania is constructively lying under the Article 5(1), after the amendment of Article 67(1)(a) so that to see these youth becoming top leaders of our dear country with accumulative leadership records.
That is what it means to say preparing youth for the big future roles. If the issue is to make mistakes, who can prove even beyond no shadow of any kind of doubt that adults (those who are not in youth group) have never made mistake(s)? We have witnessed unmentioned and unprecedented mistakes made by those people who are not ‘youth’, people of good ages, people well known as ‘senior citizens’ which have costed lives of majority underprivileged people in the country. In fact, by regarding to available references and experiences of youth model leadership records in youth-led organizations and youth in different CSOs[5], political party youth-wings, and start-ups companies in Tanzania, I would conclusively saying that; it is a matter of ‘political will’ and not ‘youth competence’ to amend the Article 67(1)(a) and allow the Article 5 (1) to prevail as a whole for the right to vote and being voted in all Tanzania elections saves for president’s position which I can strongly second the need for that person to have seasoned leadership and governance skills and experiences from public and/or private sector so that to move the national development agendas ahead as largely expected by the voters.
It might be a right time now for Tanzania to enact specific constitutional provision for the youth, which will address their challenges, needs and cementing the protection of their rights as one of the marginalized groups and majority in the community. This will not be a new thing to be done in Africa, especially in Eastern part of Africa since our sister country Kenya has made it in 2010 under its Constitution Article 55(b) which entails that; ‘The State shall take measures, including affirmative action programmes, to ensure that the youth have opportunities to associate, be represented and participate in political, social, economic and other spheres of life.’[6]
Furthermore, in Tanzania the current National Youth Development Policy[7] was made to address mischiefs arose from the predecessor youth policy of 1996. These mischiefs include; the definition of the term ‘youth’, mechanism for mainstreaming youth development issues in different sector was not clearly stipulated, contradiction between the predecessor policy and the existing laws such as the Law of Marriages Act (1971), the need to accommodate new innovations and challenges of globalization, increasing awareness of youth rights from regional and international conventions and agreements, response to the call of the National Strategy for Growth and Reduction of Poverty (NSGRP), and the demanding of the formation of a national body which is non-political and non-discriminatory to provide a forum to harmonize and unite youth effort towards decision making and sustainable development.[8]?
The current youth policy (2007) is craving to have empowered, well-motivated and responsible youth capable of participating effectively in social, political and economic development of the society.[9] With overall objective of empowering, facilitating and guiding youth and other stakeholders in the implementation of youth development issues.
Referring to specific objectives part, the current youth policy has explicitly stated that; (‘to create conducive environment for youth participation in decision-making.’ ?Basing on the experience and my deeply understanding, the phrase ‘conducive environment’ can and cannot (depending on the will of the doer) address all challenges facing young people (youth) towards accessing their constitutional right to fully engaged and meaningfully participating in decision-making processes in Tanzania.
Referring to the policy issue number 3.10: about ‘Youth Participation and Goo Governance’ the Policy states that;
‘The youth who constitute about 65 per cent of the Labour force and 35% per cent of total population are not represented in various forums and do-not participate adequately in decision-making bodies. As a result, most of the decisions which have been made do not take concerns of the youth. In addition, there is inadequate involvement of youth at national and international forums.’
If that is a true case in Tanzania, which existed for many decades to date, then it means all decisions made in Tanzania since independence lacked majority voices, where in most cases youth are the majority! And where majority are not well involved in decision-making processes then it worth not to call that community a democratic community and definitely makes that community lose necessary criteria to have good governance in place. If I have to mention, authoritarian leadership is featured by supremacy of minority voices where in this case it will be hard to distinguish it from my lovely country-Tanzania only because youth are not well engaged and meaningfully participating in decision making processes.
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[1] Article 3 (1) of the Constitution, 1977.
[2] The Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania, 1977 as amended.
[3] A person shall not be entitled to be elected to hold the office of President of the United Republic save only if; he has attained the age of forty years.
[4] He is qualified to be a Member of Parliament or a Member of the House of Representatives.
[5] Civil Society Organizations
[6] The Constitution of Kenya, 2010 Published by the National Council for Law Reporting with the Authority of the Attorney-General, www.kenyalaw.
[7] 2007
[8] Ibid
[9] supra
In Georgia State (United States), it is clear in their laws and encouraged in their daily practices to ensure youth who have attained the voting age (18 years) are meaningfully engaged in election processes. This would not been possible without the government to ‘openly’ start working closely with the civil rights organizations and learning institutions (schools, colleges and universities) to make sure; youth are empowered enough to be aware about their civic roles, rights and responsibilities, youth are ready to participate in civic affairs such as public hearings (in courts and legislatures), government public meetings, as well as in election processes from the beginning to the end. Making sure there are enough infrastructures available in place before election day (s) such as; polling stations, accessibility (public transportations) to those polling stations whereby the youth can easily reach and vote. Hence, the government with a ‘meaningful’ consultation to other stakeholders have designated polling stations in schools, colleges and university’ campuses so that youth will be motivated to go and vote for bringing majority voices in the ballot boxes.?
I have observed several youths who have been empowered with sufficient civic knowledge which gave them confidence to stand before the members of legislature (Parliament), presenting their cases and defending them enough to convince for the enormously approval of the house. For those adolescent youth who have not yet reached eighteen (18) years old, the government has allowed them from 16 - 17 years old to get involved as poll workers, a paid short-term job which gives both earning and experience to the youth. Some are allowed to get involved as election legal observers through their engagement with civil rights organizations. All these will probably contribute in improving youth civic morale and the love to democratic systems and their country.
All events in schools, colleges, and universities, whether are graduation events, welcoming first year events or any other event which ensure majority gathering, then simply that event is a civic engagement event, where usually civil rights organizations and other initiatives are officially invited to get in touch and share their services and/or products with the students.
Businessmen are openly and free to support civil rights initiatives which normally are not in favor of the government, and they are freely organizing mobilization and people’s engagement meetings to push different agendas such as climatic change, constitutional cases, public health, and other of such kind without being attacked, hated or given threats in person or to their business ventures (economic sanctions) by neither the government nor it agencies.
This shows how far giant developed countries like United States have gone on promoting inclusive democratic governance which embraces transparency and accountability as its core values. Talking about politics, or any agenda that directly touching people’s lives such as; constitution, taxes, health care, rights of minorities, courts decisions, trending news and many others is not a CRIME, where it is in schools or out of schools, in public or private places, in social media or wherever, it is not a CRIME. Because by allowing people including youth to discuss such things in public you really get the opportunity to know about their side and the extent to which that thing have touched their lives and magnitude of the impact.
A significant number of citizens no longer appear to view democracy and governance as a means to improve the quality of their lives. This is despite advancements in human development indicators. Nevertheless, when citizens turn out to vote in elections, they do so with the expectation that the winning candidate will improve some aspect of the quality of their lives. When people demand public services and administrative processes, they do so under the expectation that the public sector is in a position to help improve an aspect of their living conditions, but deep transformations in public institutions are required in order to be able to respond to these demands. When people feel insecure or threatened, it is the public sector's responsibility to provide opportunities and means to promote the peaceful resolution of conflicts and to provide security and protection.[1]
From the above paragraph and the circumstance (s) referred thereto, who is to blame in Tanzania case on youth? I understand blaming has never helped to bring solution(s) where one is in trouble. But also, I understand knowing a problem and/or source of a problem is half way to the solution. As well as accepting your weakness most of time is used as a major indicator of your strength, hence ‘who is to blame’ is still a valid question. Tanzania since independence in 1961 has been ruled by one political party well known as CCM (Chama Cha Mapinduzi) ever since to date. The ruling political party has also for all those years being responsible to form a government and dominate all major governing organs and systems in the country. When we are talking about good things happened to be done by the government since the independence in 1961 to date, seems to be OK. Then, that should also be OK to talk, mention and pin blame on the government and the long-lived ruling party for any bad thing (s) happen to be done by the government since the Independence to date. That simply means, good and bad of the government and the ruling party from Independence to date are the two sides of the same coin, hard to be separated.
Living in the words of my legendary everlasting hero, Mwl. Julius Kambarage Nyerere (the late) founding father of the nation, and first president of Tanzania, in his book ‘TUJISAHIHISHE (1962), he mentioned a number of issues and lessons which are needed to be taken by the ruling party (by then) as well as the government on addressing national matter in selfless manner. I humbly quote his words from his book as original text says;
“Ukiondoa matatizo wayapatayo binadamu kwa sababu ya mambo kama mafuriko, nzige, kiangazi, n.k., matatizo yao mengi hutokana na unafsi. Unafsi ni wa aina nyingi. Swali ambalo twalisikia mara kwa mara, "Hali yetu ya baadaye itakuwaje?", ni swali ambalo sina shaka kuna watu wanaouliza kwa nia safi kabisa. Lakini mara nyingi linalotokana na unafsi. Mtu anayeuliza anafikiri kuwa T.A.N.U. iliundwa kwa faida yake yeye binafsi.”
(Without regarding problems such as floods, locusts, drought, etc. which can face human beings, major problems facing humankind are caused by selfishness. Selfishness can be of different types. The common question that we usually get is that, ‘how will our future condition be?’ It is a question that am doubtless some of the people are asking it with honest intention. But most of the time it comes from selfishness. A person who asks that question thinks that T.A.NU (later became CCM) was founded for his personal benefit.)
“Huu ni unafsi. Kama wanachama wa T.A.N.U., na hasa viongozi, hawatakihukumu chama chetu kwa mahitaji ya Jumuiya, bali watakihukumu kwa mahitaji ya nafsi za wenyewe, chama hakitadumu. Wanachama wa aina hiyo ni ugonjwa katika chama.”
(That is selfishness. If members of T.A.N.U, especially the leaders, will not judge our party by the common good to our community(people), instead by their self needs, then this party will never last. Such kind of members are dangerous to this party.)
In his book Mwl. Nyerere further emphasized that, there are some hypocrites in his party (T.A.N.U) who assess the truth according to who is speaking it, not according to what it entails as independent thing by itself. That means, same thing can be wrong if done or said by X and can be right if done or said by Y. Truth becomes a personal issue, not independent fact.
What picture am I trying to draw before you? I really wish to show that, it is a time for accepting the truth as it is, with no beautification, and appraise ourselves for what we have done, what we are doing and what we plan to do in the future for our people including the youth population. The government and the ruling party which might be difficult to distinguish between the two in Tanzania context, should assess themselves where have they failed. Because for any reasonable person can understand that all major achievements obtained in Tanzania since the independence to date are credited to the government and the ruling party as well as all major problems to all Tanzania citizens regardless of their ages are directly resulted from the failure of the government and the ruling party, twin sisters of the same parents. Becoming a leader needs you to accept responsibilities which come with both credits and accountability. A leader should never in any time expecting less from these two returns, because most of time a leader gets more than these two returns including but not limited to critics from the public, whether in good faith or bad faith but that too can be expected by the leader. It is a critical time now, to do our ever-best decisions which even after five-to-ten-to-twenty and more years to come, we as a nation and the leaders will never hesitate to say we did this, without a fear or favour because we deeply know we did it for the best and foremost benefit of the people and the land.
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Regarding the ongoing constitutional movement which demands enactment of the Tanzania new constitution in Tanzania, it is also important now than ever before as a country, to make necessary reforms to the existing legal and policy framework; approaches and strategies; programs, plans, practices and interventions for the common good of ensuring youth rights are promoted and protected as any other marginalized groups’ rights from the Constitution to the interventions in the grassroot community. By joining disorganized efforts of the government and its agencies, civil society organizations (CSOs), donors’ community, political parties, youth group (s) and all other development stakeholders and partners, youth will be at a good place to stand for their country, positively and sustainably supporting and contributing to the development initiatives and agendas, with the notion that young people should be engaged as partners not only as beneficiaries as we are preparing them for assuming big national roles from now to the future. Youth are the voters, poll workers and election observers, it is possible in other jurisdictions and surely possible in Tanzania, it is a matter of time and political will. If politicians will not have a ‘will’ then youth will.
The United Nations has noticed that; as youth are increasingly demanding more just, equitable and progressive opportunities and solutions in their societies, the need to address the multifaceted challenges faced by young people (such as access to education, health, employment and gender equality) have become more pressing than ever.
Referring to the World Program of Action for Youth (2010) observation; youth organizations are important forums for developing skills necessary for effective participation in society, promoting tolerance and increased cooperation and exchanges between youth organizations. Improving access to information in order to enable young people to make better use of their opportunities to participate in decision-making; Developing and/or strengthening opportunities for young people to learn their rights and responsibilities, promoting their social, political, developmental and environmental participation, removing obstacles that affect their full contribution to society and respecting, inter alia, freedom of association. Taking into account the contribution of youth in designing, implementing and evaluating national policies and plans affecting their concerns.
Regarding elections and politics, they are all about people’s life, people’s welfare and people’s progress. There is no point politics can cease to exist in human life. As once said by the wisest man among many of the past, that; “man is by nature a political animal” (Aristotle). Ensuring effective youth civic engagement and meaningful youth participation in electoral processes in Tanzania is a call demanding restoration of youth position in elections, reclaiming back the lost seat, and rebuilding the glorious past by the youth for the future of their nation and generations.
On this earth, we can make a rebuttable presumption that every nation desires to have endless peace, stable security, strong economy and prosperous communities but unfortunately because of bad leadership, maladministration in public offices, poor citizens engagement and participation in decision-making processes, ultimately brought a sense of isolation, oppression, discrimination, humiliation and finally they found themselves at a point of no-return, and their?options become nothing than violence and instability.
If youth are the majority in Tanzania; and if youth are marginally engaged and ineffectively participating in civic affairs such as election in Tanzania; then Tanzania should be waiting for unprecedented political instability which will results from extremely poverty among the youth, limited hopes and opportunities, lack of quality education, poor health care and aged dominance against youth in major economic sectors such a; tourism, mining, construction, agriculture, and manufacturing. Prevalence of youth-unfriendly policies such as tax policies and mining policies which continues to oppress the small initiatives made by young men and women in Tanzania will negatively bring unwarranted results. Alternative option to this is to allow and strengthen (where existing); the rule of law, inclusive democratic governance, respect to human rights standards and comprehensive economy which embrace youth at the central role classified and benefiting according to the level of their knowledge, skills and experiences in different sectors in Tanzania.
THE END.
“GOD does not choose the glorified, HE glorifies the chosen!”
Embracing the journey of life is what makes it truly remarkable. Remember what Socrates once said, The unexamined life is not worth living - ?? Keep exploring, questioning, and growing! ?? #EternalLife #WisdomJourney
ADVOCATE | COMMISSIONER FOR OATHS | PROJECT MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT
2 年?? ?? ??
Advocate-High Court of Tanzania (Attorney). Fellow at Stanford University's Centre on Democracy, Development, and Rule of Law. Recognized by President Obama. Presidential Precinct Fellow. #DemocraticGovernance #RuleofLaw
2 年Very informative and insightful piece. Congratulations. I manage to read it today I think you should publish it and if possible organisation a conference on this theme.
Attorney. Human Rights. Chevening/MasterCard Foundation Scholar.
2 年Great piece, mate. Thanks for sharing