Member of Parliament Patience Musua has implored the government to boost entrepreneurship by removing barriers such as collateral lending in order to make it easy for young people to secure loans to start businesses.
Musua made these remarks on Wednesday while delivering her maiden speech in the National Assembly.
She said if young people can secure loans more easily and start businesses, they will become employers and reduce the number of unemployed people in the country, while at the same time contributing to the country’s Gross Domestic Product. The current situation calls for the State to respond decisively by reviewing existing fiscal, monetary and social policies with a view toward empowering and protecting businesses, she added.
“Young people are not homogenous, their needs vary. As we respond to the economic challenges faced by young people, we must maintain sight of vulnerable and marginalised groups. Youth with disabilities do experience disproportionate levels of discrimination and social exclusion in contrast to their able-bodied peers. We need to focus on creating greater access, opportunities, visibility and protections for differently-abled young Namibians,” said Musua.
She also said there is a need for increased support, resource mobilisation and funding towards the cultural and creative industries, because the national heritage is expressed through folklore, songs and stories in art and cultural practices. Therefore, art is a catalytic sector that is crucial to establishing the creative culture that feeds technology, economy and society at large.
“In the advent of the fourth Industrial Revolution, we should keep in mind that human creativity is the one thing that can never be replaced by a machine. Therefore, let us intensify investment into the arts, where many young people are stuck in informality, vulnerability and ungainful employment. We can create jobs and decent livelihoods by demonstrating political will to empower our creatives, artists, artisans and other cultural practitioners,” stated Musua.
She further urged the government to come up with tangible solutions to assist and revive the cultural and creative industries as well as sporting codes, as they are among sectors that are worst affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and public health regulations.
Source: The Namibian Press Agency
