The 17th World Festival of Youth and Students (WFYS/ Festival) set to take place in South Africa from 13 to 21 December 2010 in Tshwane is organised by the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) through the World Federation of Democratic Youth (WFDY) as part of promoting South African youth participation in the international youth development agenda.

The Festival has been openly communicated to the public, government, parliament and the media, however opposition political parties aided by some media houses have continued to report as if the NYDA did not follow proper procedures in hosting the Festival. They are continuously casting doubt over the NYDA's role in organising this world festival. This is in addition to the continued reports that seek to cast aspersions over the ability of the NYDA to carry out the mandate of promoting youth development as set out in the Act that established the NYDA in 2009.

The ongoing malicious reporting around the NYDA and now the Festival has continued despite ongoing efforts by the NYDA to clarify the importance and relevance of the Festival. We wish to reiterate, as we will continue to do whenever we feel that South Africans are being misled, that this is not a music festival or a jamboree as some have opportunistically chosen to label it.

This is championed by people who do not know that youth has always been a vital force in the development of societies. With natural creativity, will of change, transformation and strength, the struggle of youth for freedom, peace and social transformation, for the right to education, employment, democratic rights and peace has always had a significant role in the general struggle for a fair and peaceful world.

This is demonstrated by the past, but also by the present where big demonstrations of students, of young workers and of youngsters in general are a vanguard of resistance against exploitation, withdraw of rights, imperialist plunder of resources, racism, colonialism, fascism, military interventions and war, and for the survival of the Human being.

This is a festival of ideas that provides South African youth and the NYDA with increased international partnerships and networking opportunities with youth development practitioners and leaders from around the world. Through the WFYS the NYDA will be able to consolidate its own national agenda for youth development in South Africa and motivate for the inclusion of the African youth development agenda on world stage.

The Festival will raise critical issues in order to impact the shaping of policies of governments and the world. Furthermore it will unite the youth of the world for peace, solidarity and social transformation to create a world free of human rights abuses and creation of sustainable environments.

In the same time when imperialism dominates the World, in the framework of one of the deepest structural crisis of the capitalist system, worsening the situation of the youth, which is very clear in the increasing number of young people unemployed as the profits of the big economic groups keep increasing, the number of people resisting increases everyday, in all countries, where the youth and people are victims of the imperialism and bravely resist, as well as in many countries under sanctions, blockades and occupation. We have to continue to be vigilant in our own country by champions of apartheid today that claim to be champions of constitutions not to miss lead young people.

In times when imperialist forces increase militarization of the World, by implementing more military bases, by competing each other for markets and natural resources, increasing the fire power of armies and their budgets, developing high technology weapons, and devastate the environment and natural resources, earth has become a more danger place for youth to live.

Alongside with the empowerment of imperialist structures, like NATO, EU, AFRICOM and other organizations, imperialism is everyday more aggressive towards progressive, democratic and communist organizations. The increase of the military offensives and provocations against all progressive government in Latin America and Caribbean, the persecution of JUCO in Colombia, and all communist parties and youth organizations in Eastern European countries, the equalizing of communism and Nazism, the crimes against UJSario Western Sahara and youth and people of Palestine, the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, among many other examples, demonstrate that the attempt of imperialism to destroy democratic rights is not only an isolated event in one country, but is indeed one of the key elements of the imperialist offense and strategy.

Youth struggled, struggles and will keep struggling for public, free, quality and democratic education, for right to employment with full respect of labour rights, for democratic rights, for the right to democratic access to health, sport and culture, for the protection of environment, for a decent life, for friendship, solidarity and peace among all peoples of the world. There is no imperialist campaign, no anti-scientific school book, no industry of culture, no nationalist feeling, racial prejudice, secessionist movement, ethnic or religious conflict promoted by imperialism that can ever stop youth struggle from happening and being victorious.

The 17th World Festival of Youth and Students will be held having before it a rich past of WFYS experience, particularly the experience from the 16th WFYS, held in Caracas - Venezuela, in August 2005, which success represents a big responsibility and a big hope for the 17th WFYS, that will take place in Pretoria - South Africa, in December from 13 -21, 2010.

The 17th WFYS will underline the anti-imperialist character of the World Festivals of Youth Students. The firm confrontation with imperialism is the key element for WFYS resistance, with an important contribution from the progressive and socialist countries. The international, mass participation of the youth and students and political-cultural characteristics are elements that we should reinforce, alongside with the solidarity with South Africa resistance to any type of imperialist intervention, building a multicultural and multinational country of peace, sovereignty and social justice, now that the brave struggle of the South African people and youth have broken the grids of apartheid.

As part of ensuring broad participation the NYDA and WFYS Organising Committee hosted a consultative forum with government departments, non-governmental organisations and youth formations, to allow them an opportunity to influence the focus of the festival discussions in-line with the countries developmental agenda, linked to the global agenda as defined by various charters, including the Africa Youth Charter to which South Africa is a signatory.

Discussions at the festival will follow the following themes: Right to employment, economic issues, environment and development; Public, free and universal access to education, science, culture and information; Democratic rights, freedoms and human rights and the struggle for peace, sovereignty and solidarity against imperialism.

Following submissions for the Medium Term Expenditure Framework, an amount of R29 million has been confirmed for the event from the National Treasury. This money will be used to cover necessary logistical needs to ensure a successful hosting of the event including venue and catering charges. The government of South Africa has got a responsibility to ensure the promotion and maintenance of sound international relations, solidarity and cooperation.

In addition we have requested Premiers to pay for the transportation and accommodation for their provincial representatives. We are also requested government departments, the private sector and non-government organisations to exhibit at the Festival at nominal fees. 30,000 young people are expected at the Festival including about 15 heads of states and international and local artists, business leaders. Of the 30,000 people 15,000 are international delegates and the other 15,000 are local delegates.

The local delegates will comprise provincial youth representatives from different economic, political and cultural backgrounds. The Festival will also be open to day delegates who will be able to attend as per their Festival programme selection. Youth leaders from all 153 World Federation of Democratic Youth (WFDY) member countries including Angola, Greece, India, Morocco, Namibia, Palestine, Senegal, Spain and South Africa will also attend. WFDY is a structure whose objective is to unite the youth of the world and mobilise them around the banner of promoting universal principles of peace, freedom and social transformation to create a world free of human rights abuses and creation of sustainable environments.

The organisation is recognised by the United Nations as an international non-governmental organisation. Doubt cast over the NYDA performance is also misleading especially in light of the organisational budget allocation; the NYDA has been allocated a budget of R369 million and not a budget close to a billion as claimed by many in newspaper reports, furthermore annual salaries of NYDA employees account for under 32% of the NYDA budget.

Despite budgetary constraints, the NYDA has been able to make several inroads in its first year of existence including receiving an unqualified audit in the 2009/2010 financial year. By March 2010 the NYDA had created and/or sustained over 25,653 jobs through the Microfinance programme against the target of 14,000; overall 56,303 jobs have been created and/or sustained through all NYDA efforts to date.

On the backdrop of our current budgetary constraints, it should be noted that the international partnerships that will be leveraged during the Festival can assist the NYDA through either funding for our programmes or knowledge sharing on youth development in future. In the immediate future, there are also economic benefits for the country from hosting the event in terms of foreign spending in the country for the duration of the event. Youth owned business are being prioritised for the Festival procurement opportunities, which will stimulate youth economic growth.

Because we are in touch with young people's needs and know that they require support and development we will be continuing with our youth development programmes, sourcing partnerships for the benefit of the youth as we are doing with the World Festival of Youth and Students.

We are even more encouraged because the Interdepartmental Committee on Youth Affairs which sat in Pretoria today, pledged their support for the Festival as an important youth development forum.

We call upon all progressive youth and students to join and solder on in the struggle against imperialism, and work actively from now to strengthen the 17th WFYS in their countries and participate in the Festival in South Africa. Lets all build a World of peace.

>> Andile Lungisa is the Deputy President of the ANC Youth League and Executive Chairman of the National Youth Development Agency. This article first appeared in ANC Today, the weekly online newsletter of the African National Congress.

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