Government has, through the Ministry of Sport, Youth and Child Development, allocated K3 billion for the training of 600 underprivileged youths in the country.
Sport, Youth and Child Development Minister, Kenneth Chipungu disclosed this after touring Zambia National Service Chiwoko Skills Training Camp in Chipata district of Eastern province yesterday (Friday).
ZANIS reports that Mr. Chipungu said a total of 600 underprivileged youths, aged between 15 and 26 years old, will next month be recruited for training in various skills at ZNS training camps in Chiwoko and Kitwe respectively.
He said among the 600 recruits, 400 will be boys while 200 will be girls to undergo an 18- month long skills training at ZNS Chiwoko and Kitwe starting April this year.
“I am very impressed with what our colleagues in Uniform are doing here to help our youths and as Government, we have set aside K3 billion for his programme,” he said.
He noted that although the recruitment of youths for training at the two ZNS camps was initially designed for street kids and youths, the next intake would include underprivileged children from within normal community setup.
His ministry has since put in place committees that would help identify young people that need to undergo such training to acquire survival skills.
Mr. Chipungu told journalists that Government would also continue providing start up tool kits for graduating youths so that they could be self employed if they failed to get into the mainstream employment.
He explained that this is to ensure that graduating youths do not revert to street life where begging and criminal activities were their way of survival.
“For us, giving survival skills to youths is the best because they can be self employed,” he stressed.
The minister, who was accompanied by ZNS Commandant, Raphael Chisheta, has since urged ZNS to continue their noble activity of rehabilitating and integrating street children and vulnerable youths into normal society.
Meanwhile, ZNS Chiwoko Camp Commanding Officer, John Mwanza said a total of 453 youths have graduated in various skills while 93 deserted in the last two intakes.
Major Mwanza said in the first intake, 119 youths were dropped in at the camp, out of which 91 graduated successfully, 25 deserted one died of natural causes, one was expelled for gross indiscipline while one was transferred to Kitwe ZNS camp.
He said in the second intake, 435 youths were dropped in at Chiwoko but only 362 graduated successfully after 71 deserted, one died and one was expelled.
He disclosed that 70 youths who graduated in the last intake were employed by ZNS and were doing fine.
Major Mwanza further said the camp was ready to receive another intake but appealed to the Ministry of Sports, Youth and Child Development to provide the centre with accessories needed for training.
Among the courses undertaken at Chiwoko ZNS Camp are carpentry and joinery, bricklaying and plastering, automotive mechanics, general agriculture, plumbing and sheet metal.
Minister Chipungu is in Chipata, Eastern Province to inspect youth training centres and Orphans and Vulnerable Children centres.
ZANIS/ENDS/KSH/CLM
Lets wait and see how this will work out
Thats is rather a good strategy
They should have allocted more! 3 billion is the same as 3million.
Too bad
u see its eastern province again> awe twachula. ku ba ngoni. ee am from eastern but chacilamo please. while in the south people a dying. please is this the way things are going. any way its payback. this maoney is going into RB group. iye
Define needy youth? I may qualify too
Iwe Chewe did u read the article? It says 15-26 yrs
#5, Is Kitwe in Eastern Province as well? Be objective, Sata will NEVER rule Zambia because of his cheap outdated type of politics.
What about the life of a needy youth like Cardson Kabwe? [-([-([-([-(
gov. well done?
-firstly-you will be spending 5million kwacha on each child or person.
-secondly- these guys will go to a gov. institution where servants are already on gov. payroll.
-thirdly-at eighteen months you are spending 280000 on one individual per month.
-fourthly-is this money part of the expense of the national service or it’s separate costs?
most people get excited about announcements but fall short to ask fundamental questions.
THIS PROJECT WILL PROBABLY COST GOV. 500MILLION KWACHA.
I have no problem with government spending my tax on rehabilitating street kids. We need them to contribute to society in a positive way in future.
It certainly beats spending money on an over bloated government.
if they can “trim” down the number of foreign trips by govt. officials then i guess mo funds can b ijected into such important fields. it is a very brilliant idea. thru this, hope the number of street kids will reduce. god bless zambia an give them leaders wisdom to lead our country.
I am a youth though not needy at the moment.
My dad went to that camp many years ago(Chiwoko National Service Camp) and Iam told that the conditions are pathetic, especially sanitation and diet wise.
They are stating that its carpentry and other trades that they teach, that is not all, they also teach you political lessons against your will, military academy is part of this what I can call rehablilitation of these needy street kids.. my foot!
king cobra
i like your reasoning, you make so much sense
#8 I suppose you would call starvation, aimless globe-trotting,and dinosaur resurrection the epitome of modern politics.
atleast your relatives will enjoy
Life is not easy anywhere at least youths who are taught should utilize their skills. **==**==**==
Why only 200 girls out of 600! This is not good enough. As much as the programme is good but giving more preference to boys at the expense of girls is not fair.
A likkle help is better than none at all. De yutes dem gwine good still.
😡
please lt may you guys try to helps here in russia saint petersburgy as we va cat and dog situation . the accountant at the embbassy has received the money but he can not send the money to us as we made know to the world that we having a student suffering amongst us. please help us try to get the point of this .