Opening sets the tone for the Youth Convention's deliberations at Nelson Mandela University

Higher Education in South Africa and the World is in transition. In the country, student movements, intellectual badyzes and government reports in recent years have shown that the trend towards more decolonized, equitable and inclusive higher education institutions is slow.

Young people have been key participants around deepening the transformation in the country and the sector, as evidenced by the campaigns of access, transformation and decolonization of recent years.

In a concerted attempt to raise and make the voices of young people a Mandela University launched this morning the Nelson Mandela Annual Convention, led by the Governance and Student Development Branch under the leadership of the Dean of Students

The Congress will run over three days until August 1 under the theme The Age and Hope of Madiba will zoom in on issues related to education, leadership, employability, entrepreneurship and health and well-being.

In opening the Convention, Vice-Chancellor Prof Sibongile Muthwa said that the slow pace of change was due, in part, to the contextual complexities badociated with "persistent divisions based on largely on the race, clbad and patriarchy that manifest in the fabric of the university and its features ".

"By starting to fundamentally change this, it is necessary to focus on practices that address problems of social justice and poverty reduction at the local level, continually and comprehensively", she says, but also zoom in on curriculum and research, diversity, social cohesion and social inclusion, as well as community involvement, at the heart of which must be students.

"The life of a student-centered university is its desire to locate the voice of students in strategic platforms where commitments on student life take place. This should be complemented by an active approach and program to develop the full human potential of each student as a youth. "

The convention is auspicious with the belief of the university that" higher education plays a major role in the development of a society that is given as compelling vision to become a dynamic African university, recognized for its leadership in the production of advanced knowledge.

For a sustainable future, the convention aims to find lasting solutions to the challenges identified in young people.

In his inaugural speech in April of this year, Professor Muthwa set out a vision for establishing centers of convergence. The university meets the community to engage on common platforms to find solutions to practical problems that affect our immediate communities. [19659004"CetteConventiondedéveloppementdelajeunesseestconçuecommeuneexpressiondelanotionetdubutconceptuelsd'unpôledeconvergencemisenplacepourpermettreunediscussionetunsoutiensoutenussurlesbesoinsdéfisaspirationsetvisionsdesjeunes""Grâceàcelalesjeunesetlesétudiantsresterontpositionnéscommelesprincipauxparticipantsetcontributeursàlatransformationdelasociétéetdel'universitétravaillantàdessolutionspluscentréessurlesjeunestoutenfavorisantl'innovationetledéveloppementcontinu"[19659004Laconventionviseàcréeretmaintenirunréseaud'organisationsprivéespubliquesouciviquesetd'individusquijouentdansl'espacededéveloppementdesjeunesquidevraitêtreconnectéauxjeunesetêtreactivépoursoutenirlesidéesetlesprojetsdesjeunesversleurpropredéveloppement

It s & # 39; expects that & # 39; he produce general results, including the development of a youth development index for the annual publication to reflect the progress and the creation and maintenance of a research laboratory on the theory and practices of youth development.

The Dean of Students, Luthando Jack, defined the context of the Convention, describing the situation of young people in the country struggling against unemployment. among other topics, education and health are not what they are meant to be.

"The key is the inclusion of young people … [and this convention is] unique in its identity and in its goal to improve the quality of life of young people The Minister of Finance, Economic Development Eastern Cape Environment and Tourism, Oscar Mabuyane, and Nelson Mandela Ba mayor, Cllr Athol Trollip, echoed concerns about the high rate of unemployment among youth and

Some of the speakers of the day include the Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences of Mandela University, Professor Lungile Pepeta, and political badysts Rincer P Mashele, who spoke of Young people and the fourth industrial revolution: What should be the response of young people and for what purpose? Prof. Somadoda Fikeni delivered a speech on Indlulamithi South Africa Scenarios 2030 – Looking Over Trees: Implications for Youth Inclusion and Sustainable Development of Youth Dr. Themba Masondo and the Prof . Barry Hanyane were the other speakers on the first day of the convention. Hlagala of the Department of Surveillance and Performance Evaluation of the Presidency .