As premier DD Mabuza tables his State of the Province Address (Sopa) today, I expect him to speak to me and other youngsters on matters of socio-economic upliftment. So many things are happening in the country.
New laws have been enacted, policies are developed and so forth. On January 1 this year alone, the Tax Incentive Bill, commonly known as the youth-wage subsidy, came into effect.
I expect to hear how my province, in particular, aims to ensure that youth benefit from it, ensuring that employers in all sectors and young people know and understand it.
I also expect to hear how government plans to fast-track the implementation of the Youth Accord, the Mpumalanga Growth Path and also how it will improve the monitoring of youth-serving parastatals.
In last year’s Sopa, the premier made it clear that government will strengthen its relationship with the mining and energy industries and this year, we expect to hear about the progress and how young people will benefit from these relationships.
Last year’s Sopa was the best I have ever heard. Clearly, the premier and his cabinet worked tirelessly to consolidate it.
It was a well-balanced presentation which connected well to the national development plan and I liked how it was able to give specific figures on outputs.
It is the responsibility of each and every young person to listen to this statement and comprehend it because it is after all a preamble to the services and functions of the provincial government. Speak to us on twitter @_mpunews @hlengimganu and share your thoughts.
