The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has launched a $5,000,000 economic empowerment project in Zimbabwe.

Tagged ‘Local Works Zimbabwe Youth Programme’, the project is aimed creating economic opportunities to address youth unemployment, increase incomes, and combat rising poverty among young people in urban and rural areas.

‘USAID would like young people to take the driver’s seat’, the USAID/Zimbabwe Mission Director, Art Brown, said.

‘Our approach under the local works programme is slightly different from the traditional method of development programme design and implementation’.

Brown urged young people to take the lead in defining and addressing the diverse challenges they face.

‘Through the programme’s locally-led development approach, USAID will facilitate the creation of a collaborative action network of local actors, promote multi-stakeholder dialogue, generate cross-sectoral partnerships, and discover sustainable collaborative solutions to the most pressing challenges identified by Zimbabwean youth’, he added.

USAID, it is understood, will support young Zimbabweans, along with other local actors – communities, youth networks, organisations, private sector, and others – to set their own development agenda, develop solutions, and ultimately, make those solutions a reality.

‘USAID will facilitate the design of the Local Works Zimbabwe Youth Programme, and also support the establishment of a Youth Advisory Board, which will oversee the design and implementation of this initiative’, Brown said.

‘This will ensure that youth lead the programme and their voice is part of the design, implementation, and monitoring of activities’.

Source: New Zimbabwe

Photo source: A.Davey