Govt releases K18m Youth funds

THE Government has released K18 million from the budgeted K20 million Youth Development Fund (YDF) for this year, with anticipation that the beneficiaries will create more jobs.
Giving an update on the 2014 YDF in Lusaka yesterday, Youth and Sports Minister Chishimba Kambwili said K18,037,558.98 had been released as YDF for this year to cater for all the 10 provinces, which is part of the total K20,233,899.00 budgetary allocation.
Mr Kambwili said of the K18,037,558.98, Central Province had been allocated K2,773,500.98, Copperbelt Province will get K1,800,000.00, Eastern Province will receive K2,764,058.00 and K1,300,000.00 will go to Luapula Province.
Others are Lusaka Province with K2,900,000.00, Muchinga Province has been allocated K1,200,000.00, Northern Province will get K1,300,000.00, North-Western Province K1,200,000.00 while Southern Province will receive K1,500,000.00 and K1,300,00.00 is meant for Western Province.
Of the K20,233,899.00 budgetary allocation, K3,000,000.00 is a meant for grants to youth organisations, K13,000.000.00 is a revolving fund while K4,233,899.00 is for administrating the fund.
“I would like to take this opportunity to inform the nation that out of the 700 youths that have so far benefited from the Youth Development Fund from 2012 to 2013, over 1,000 jobs have been created and it is expected that this number will rise in 2014 as the ministry has intensified its monitoring and mentorship programmes,” Mr Kambwili said.
Mr Kambwili said distribution of the funds had been decentralised to ensure equity and efficient distribution, and the funds would be divided and allocated to provinces using population and poverty variables.
Mr Kambwili said the Government recognised entrepreneurship as an integral component of youth employment creation and that could be attained through entrepreneurship training and development, micro-credit for youth-led business as well as financing start-up business by the youth.
The minister said the Government had been providing budgetary allocations to the YDF since 2010 with the aim of empowering the youth with resources for them to venture into viable income generating projects.
“The Patriotic Front Government is committed to ensuring that all youths, regardless of their political or religious affiliations and wherever they are found, should benefit from the Government empowerment initiatives for their improved livelihoods,” he said.
Mr Kambwili said YDF was a catalyst to employment and wealth creation for the youth who wished to take up entrepreneurship to create employment for themselves and others, adding that self- employment was the easiest and quickest way to wealth creation using strategies at micro level. TIMES OF ZAMBIA