Gaborone, Botswana: Young people from across Botswana gathered for a powerful dialogue with UNFPA East and Southern Africa Regional Director, Ms. Lydia Zigomo, under the theme “Accelerating Progress Towards Realizing Botswana’s Demographic Dividend – Youth Voices on the Challenges and Opportunities.”
The engagement brought together youth leaders who spoke openly about the realities they face and the systemic reforms needed for Botswana to unlock the full potential of its young population.
Opening the panel, Ms. Sonia Gaobolae reflected on the long history of youth and women being excluded from leadership across Africa. She noted that young people are often invited into spaces built without them, expected to participate in systems they did not shape and that do not truly accommodate their voices. For her, the core challenge is not simply creating seats at the table but reimagining participation itself. She emphasised that young people remain disenfranchised, disinterested, and disconnected from political processes, not because they lack ideas, but because they are navigating structures that were never designed for their inclusion. She urged that the future demands a transformed agenda, one that changes who holds power, ensures accessibility for all; including those with disabilities, and meaningfully integrates youth into decisions that shape their lives.
Turning to the economy, Mr. Timothy Mweemba highlighted the structural barriers that trap many young people in unemployment. He described Botswana’s monosectoral economic landscape as fundamentally misaligned with the needs and aspirations of today’s youth. While global markets shift toward digitalisation and remote work, the country’s labour systems remain rigid and slow to adapt. He warned against the tendency to offer individual solutions to systemic issues, noting that administrative burdens and outdated processes continue to limit young people’s opportunities. Timothy called for the creation of low-entry, high-value jobs and for “patient, risky finance”, unsecured loans that support innovation, entrepreneurship, and economic diversification rather than temporary social relief. Without structural adjustments, he cautioned, young people will continue to fall through the cracks of well-intentioned but ineffective programmes.
Ms. Sekgabo Seselamarumo spoke candidly about the state of youth health and wellbeing, especially SRHR, mental health, HIV prevention, and access to care. While Botswana has youth-friendly clinics, she emphasised that many “are not truly youth friendly” and lack the environments and staff that understand the realities of young people. She described the need for spaces that make youth feel welcomed; places with comfortable seating, games, WiFi, and workers who speak their language. More importantly, she called for integrated, one-stop centres where mental health support, SRHR services, and routine health needs are provided seamlessly. Several young people in the room echoed her points, highlighting underfunded facilities, the need to hire more youth health providers, and the importance of accessibility features such as braille, sign language, and ramps. They emphasized that while conversations about empowerment often happen among young people, systemic change remains slow and uneven.
On gender equality, Mr. Bryan Shabane addressed the persistent challenge of GBV, child marriage, and harmful social norms. He described GBV as a “multi-faceted wall” that cannot be dismantled by addressing symptoms alone. He stressed the need to understand the root causes of violence, many of which stem from economic insecurity and deeply ingrained cultural practices. Bryan warned that as long as economic dependence forces women to stay in abusive relationships; as little as food sometimes being the reason, they will remain vulnerable. He urged the design of interventions that address economic root causes, strengthen family structures, and reinforce legal protections, including the importance of tools like a sex offender registry. His message was clear: without reshaping the systems around families and communities, GBV will persist.
Throughout the dialogue, young people voiced concerns about tokenism and last-minute invitations to processes where their input holds little influence. They highlighted the defensiveness they often encounter when raising issues such as underfunded clinics or poor implementation of youth-focused policies. There was a collective call for laws that effectively protect them, systems that scale beyond privileged spaces, and leadership that includes young people not only in consultation but also in execution. The room captured a sense of urgency, the understanding that achieving the demographic dividend requires far more than symbolic gestures; it requires transformation.
The session reached a poignant moment when young poet Motlatsi shared a line from her work, asking, “In the new Botswana, how are you stepping into the light?” It was a question that lingered in the room, challenging both leaders and youth to envision their role in shaping the country’s future. Closing the dialogue, Ms. Lydia Zigomo affirmed the validity of young people’s experiences and highlighted that investing in women and youth is the fastest way to accelerate national wealth as 51% of Botswana's wealth is generated by its human capital. Yet, the Human Capital Index of Botswana is lower than what could be predicted for its level of development, due to gaps in quality of education, burden of HIV/Aids, and lingering inequalities. Therefore health and education of the youthful population are key to capitalizing on the demographic dividend opportunity.
The UNFPA Regional Director concluded by encouraging the youth to remain curious, ask hard questions, urging young people to interrogate everything, to question the systems around them, and to build new ones when the old are not working. “We really need you young people to use your creative energies to build new systems,” she said, “because what we are taught sometimes is different from what the current world requires, and we must be future-fit.”
