WHERE’S THE YOUTH VOICE IN SA’S NATIONAL DIALOGUE?

Alright, let’s talk about it. It’s Youth Day in South Africa, a day meant to honour the
courage of young people who risked everything in 1976. But fast forward to 2025...
and honestly? The vibe is off.

 We’ve just heard the president announce this big thing called the National Dialogue.
It’s meant to be a moment where South Africans come together and decide how to
fix what’s broken, jobs, education, poverty, crime. Big stuff.
But here's the twist:
In this 34-member Eminent Persons Group appointed to guide the process, there’s
almost no actual young person leading the charge. Miss SA Mia le Roux is on the
list, but apart from that, where are the voices who grew up in this democracy, not the

one who fought for it? Where are the hustling graduates, the student leaders, the un-
employed dreamers, the youth activists, the content creators building movements on

TikTok?
 How can we claim to be shaping SA’s future, when the actual future, the youth, ismissing from the room?
We’re talking:
+ 60% youth unemployment
+ Mental health breakdowns
+ A digital economy we’re not being prepared for
+ Climate collapse
+ GBV
+ NSFAS chaos
+ And a whole Gen Z that’s screaming “Nobody’s listening!”
+ Even the Inter-Ministerial Committee and the Steering Committee structure, zero
clarity on youth-specific seats. Meanwhile, we’re told it’s “people-led.” So who are these people? Where’s the guy who just failed matric but still wants to fix this coun-
try?

We wanna know:
+ How can you talk about the future, when the future isn’t in the room?

+ Do you think the National Dialogue can truly work without young people at the cen-
tre?

+ Or is youth inclusion just a buzzword until the politicians really hand over the mic?
+ And what do you think are the issues youth should be putting on that Dialogue
agenda, GBV? Mental health? Jobs? Digital access? Education reform?

+ Let’s get real. If you were on that panel, what’s the one change you’d fight for?
+ Potential Prompts for Listeners (Read On-Air):
+ “Should every national conversation include a 21-year-old with no political ties?”
+ “Is experience more important than lived youth reality?”
+ “Are we being sidelined... again?”