Johannesburg – Young people are vying for change as South Africa heads to elections after three decades of democracy. Confidence in the ruling ANC, which is tipped to lose its majority, is particularly low for the youngest voters casting their ballots for the first time.
Amid a deepening social and economic crisis, young South Africans are demanding urgent action to reduce corruption, create jobs and improve basic needs and services.
Three-quarters of people aged 18 to 24 say their confidence in the nation's future direction has plummeted – and they intend to hold the next government to account.
Those are the results of a survey by the Ichikowitz Family Foundation, an NGO in Johannesburg that interviewed 1,000 people from this demographic across South Africa.
🙌🏾 The youth in South Africa are feeling pessimistic about their future, influenced by widespread issues such as corruption, unemployment, and social inequalities. In contrast, Rwanda and Ivory Coast exhibit more optimism among their youth despite challenges.#YouthEmpowerment pic.twitter.com/FZjJIgCMUt
— WorldVisualized (@WV_on_X) May 9, 2024
Young people will form the next generation of leaders who are about to emerge and make deep changes, the foundation's founder and chairman, Ivor Ichikowitz, told RFI.
"I believe they will play a huge role in the election and in changing not only South Africa but the whole continent altogether," he said.
Young voters make up nearly 15 percent of the electorate for the 29 May vote – and at least half of them say they'll be heading to the polls.
Corruption worries
Corruption is now the biggest concern in the minds of youth, the survey found. Eighty-four percent of respondents were worried about this compared to 64 percent the last time the survey was carried out in 2022.
More than three-quarters of people were unhappy with efforts by the government to crack down on corruption, while nearly half said corruption was the reason they would not find jobs.
Four in five young South Africans said they wanted to see tougher punishments for those convicted of corruption. The same number were in favour of creating an independent police task force.
Roughly 80 percent said people convicted of corruption should be prevented from standing for public office, and that candidates must not have a criminal record.
The results showed that young South Africans were looking to the government and other leaders to implement meaningful change, Ichikowitz said.
“This change needs to be systemic. The youth of South Africa are clearly aligned in this view.”
Other issues of high concern were lack of employment and gender-based violence, while worries over environmental issues including climate change and water scarcity also jumped.
Many young people, meanwhile, feel that not enough has been done to develop a non-racial post-apartheid society in South Africa.
There is a growing wariness that standards have plateaued and that this will continue into the future.
It would be "foolhardy" to ignore the warnings being expressed by South Africa's youth as they get ready to vote, and to influence the people around them, Ichikowitz said.
