Facebook
Twitter
YouTube
SpunOut.ie Blog
Digital Unity
Blog: Celebrating International Youth Day.
During the month of June, SpunOut.ie travelled south of the equator to Tanzania in an attempt to gain insight into young people’s health and wellbeing issues. We were blown away by the incredible individuals we were lucky enough to meet. Young Tanzanians are eager for change, knowledge, development and action and are on route to making real change in their country. August 12th marks International Youth Day, a United Nations day of celebrating young people all over the world. To mark the occasion we are launching ‘Digital Unity’ which illustrates our time in East Africa through blogs, podcasts, photographs and short videos.
What struck us most in Tanzania was a deep sense of spirit, community, family and friendship. Parallel to this was the desire for ‘development’ in the western sense of the word. This yearning ‘to be developed’ which may be necessary in part, is extensive, but at what cost to young Tanzanians in the future? In Ireland, it is seen that we are fully ‘developed’ and yet the breakdown of family and community life is palpable, compounding an ever individualistic society. Several young people we spoke to believed we could learn invaluable lessons from each other in this way and we had to agree.
For economic growth and expansion to take place, some Tanzanians in leadership roles believe they must look overseas for assistance and direction, much like we have done in Ireland in the past and still today. “The problem here”, Daniel aged 23, a young male we met in Dar es Salaam said “is that often this guidance causes nations to naively hand over resources, assets and rights benefitting the assistant and not the assisted". Undoubtedly poverty, inaccessibility to education, inequality and other health and social issues are widespread in many parts of Tanzania. Therefore, it is understandable that leaders may look externally for help. But from our meetings alone it was obvious that young Tanzanians were proud and determined to look internally, trusting their own abilities to take their country forward. Something they are very keen to do, if given the opportunity.
On another note, issues such as self harm and suicide were shocking to many we spoke with, but there is some evidence out there suggesting that the rates of both rise in tide with economic development. One group of young people we spoke to felt it vital that structures to protect the welfare of the people are put into place now, so that Tanzanians do not have to face these heart breaking realities in the future as we do here at home.
It has never been easier to communicate using the power of technology. Although internet penetration in Tanzania is minute and inaccessible to many, this is changing dramatically with plans for broadband cables across the coast of East Africa in the coming years. Now is the time to prepare. Langa Sarakikya; a university lecturer we met up with, feels we should embrace new technology to stop negative portrayals of Africa as “the dark continent” in the media, instead embracing the positive aspects of our “global villa”’. See below for Langa’s message to you.
Globalisation integrates the good, the bad and the ugly. The key is to look within and without. We should all perhaps trust the expertise of the people who understand the lie of the land whilst being open to other nations, sharing information and educating each other along the way. The need for communication, dialogue and understanding between 'the western world’ and Africa is more important now than ever, so the downright ugly face of development does not affect individual lives and local communities at the heart of it all.
With thanks to the Simon Cumbers Media Challenge Fund and Connect World for their generous support of our project.
