The Ministry of Youth, Sport and Child Development has embarked on a program in conjunction with Zambia National Service [ZNS] to provide skills training to street kids to impart them with life changing skills and a better life.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Zambian Business Times – ZBT, Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Child Development, Joe Kapembwa stated they want to start with 1,000 street kids for the first intake.
Kapembwa told ZBT that the partnership between the two institutions will ensure that the street children are not given military skills but life skills such as crafts, trades, Agro skills etc.
When asked by ZBT how the program intends to accommodate the street kids since most of them have no fixed aboard, Kapembwa stated that their partner, ZNS has adequate accommodation that they used to train all grade 12s some time back, which is still available today and may just need a bit of touch ups.
“We intend to get at least a one thousand (1,000) for starters. Remember that ZNS used to train grade 12s; those facilities are still available. People used to go there and they used to stay in the camps, so those are still available”, he said.
In addition, Kapembwa said that the reason they chose to work with ZNS is because they have the capacity and technical know how to train people and instill a sense of discipline. ZNZ is also very good in terms of mindset change and inculcating a sense of being productive.
“Basically, the MOU with ZNS is for us to work together as two government institutions. You know that ZNS is a Semi-Military institution. The idea to work with ZNS is that they have facilities where they train cadets and so on. So we thought that we can work well with them and they are strong in terms of mindset change, and that’s where we want to build from.
“Of course it’s not to train the children in military skills, but rather mindset change and other important life skills so that as they are coming from the ZNS training centers, they have the skills to enable them earn an honest living”.
The Ministry we will provide them with an exit strategy either they can become mechanics, plumbers, electrician, go into agriculture and various other skills that will be provided to them p.”, he said.
On the target locations from where the street kids will be recruited from, Kapembwa told ZBT that this issue of street kids is mostly along the line of rail. This is were we have seen the breakdown in the extended family system.
He said that other towns and district in Zambia still have strong community and cultural values which enable the taking care of Orphans and vulnerable children by the extended family system as well as community members. That’s why we see the issue of street kids being mainly concentrated along the line of rail. However, this program is national and aims to end the challenge of children being raised on the streets across Zambia.
