A YOUTH empowerment programme aimed at equipping young people with driving skills while tackling drug and substance abuse has been launched in Cowdray Park, Bulawayo, through a collaborative initiative by local leadership.
The programme, targeting 300 youths from wards 6 and 15, will provide sponsored driving lessons for one week.
After completing the training, participants will proceed to sit for provisional driver’s licence examinations at the Vehicle Inspectorate Department (VID).
The initiative is being spearheaded by Cowdray Park legislator Arthur Mujeyi and councillors Nkosinathi Hove (ward 6) and Ashton Mhlanga (ward 15).
Mhlanga yesterday told Southern Eye that the intervention is aimed at equipping young people with practical, hands-on skills that can enhance their livelihoods and improve their chances of securing employment.
He said the provision of such training was part of a broader effort to support youth development and economic empowerment within the community.
Mhlanda also said the programme sought to keep young people meaningfully engaged, with the intention of reducing their vulnerability to social vices.
“We want to empower youths and remove them from the streets so that they do not engage in drug and substance abuse,” he said.
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“What we collectively did was pay for their driving lessons for one week, after which they will go on to sit for their provisional licence examinations at VID.”
Hove said registration for the programme was in progress, urging eligible youths to take advantage of the opportunity.
“We are still registering participants. Our target is 300 youths from wards 6 and 15,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mujeyi described the initiative as a coordinated effort among local leaders to address unemployment and idleness among young people.
“I am working together with the two councillors, Hove and Mhlanga and we are aiming to reduce idleness among youths,” he said.
“We are paying for their lessons so that they can later go and write their provisional licence examinations at VID.”
Mujeyi said the programme would start this week despite his temporary absence from Bulawayo, expressing confidence in the councillors to oversee its rollout.
Residents have welcomed the initiative, describing it as a positive step towards youth empowerment, skills development and the reduction of drug and substance abuse in the community.
By combining training with efforts to discourage drug and substance abuse, the programme reflects a broader commitment by local leaders to promote responsible, skilled and self-reliant young people within the community.
