On 4-8 December young co-operators from Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland took part in a Youth Co-operative Exchange Forum at Mavuso Trade Centre in Swaziland.
The BOLESWA Forum was officially launched by the Minister of Commerce, Industry and Trade, Jabulani Mabuza.
This Tripartite Youth Cooperative Exchange Programme came about after youth from the three countries got together to organise a forum where young people could get together to share ideas on how best they can contribute to the development of their countries’ economies.
In his statement, Mr Mabuza said that young people were a powerful force for change. He added that the Forum was also designed to promote self-directed business initiatives where the owners of businesses decided on their own what to do to increase production. It also opens doors for marketing of products from the three countries, he said.
Swaziland currently has 26 registered youth co-operative societies. The government is encouraging the societies to factor in the production of goods and services that would tap into regional and international markets. They also launched an umbrella body for youth co-operatives in the country known as Swaziland National Youth Cooperative Alliance (SNYCA), which is an apex organisation mandated by the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Trade to coordinate all youth co-operatives activities in the country.
