Yes, give the youth space to be creative and useful

When I first moved to Rwanda, the first few days were quite tough. I not only struggled with adapting to a new language but also nearly met my creator several times as I tried to cross the roads where cars keep right instead of left. With time I learnt so much more and gradually started fitting in quite well. One of the things that caught my eye was the public transport system. While most commuter taxis were simple cars with words indicating the route they were operating, the ones from one particular suburb (Nyamirambo) were something else. The taxis operating the Nyamirambo route came with eye catching graffiti and sound systems that could shame some discotheques. If you had sizeable luggage more often than note you had to sit with it as the space for luggage at the back often had a big speaker already in place. It was my first time to see public transport vehicles with sport rims and very youthful drivers. I was blown away by the creativity that was invested in giving these cars a unique look. The cars were so unique that they could be identified by the graffiti. If one was branded with pictures of a particular musician others would have a different personality. The branding was mainly of American hip hop musicians, basketball stars and footballers. There was also an East African touch in this branding as I remember seeing one branded with Juliana Kanyomozi (Uganda), another with Ali Kiba (Tanzania), another with Kidum (Burundi) and also one with Ogopa DJs (Kenya) scribbled all over it. Not surprising, I soon learnt that this creativity had its real home in Nairobi, Kenya. In Nairobi where taxis are known as Matatus, the graffiti business is a huge industry and when you are in one such Matatu it is a whole new experience. I remember boarding one along Ngong road and wondering how exactly someone was supposed to say they want to alight with the music at full blast. All said and done, the Matatu business in Nairobi puts the fit in graffiti. The creativity is simply mind blowing. Sadly though the youth involved in this business have been having trouble with authorities cracking down on their business. The same happened in Rwanda more so when bigger buses were introduced as the graffiti never seemed to move to them as well. We have gradually moved from the eye catching Nyamirambo taxis to the dull single colour buses (Coaster). While launching a cashless transport service in Nairobi the other day, President Uhuru Kenyatta said something that was simply music to the ears of the youths involved in the graffiti industry. He wondered why there was interference with the graffiti on Matatus and asked that the youth be allowed to continue with their work instead. In short President Kenyatta is fully aware of how the creative graffiti industry has grown to become a source of employment for a lot of young people in Kenya and instead of killing it the best thing to do is promote it. On this I totally agree with the Kenyan leader. It has been said countless times that the biggest challenge facing countries like ours is youth unemployment. Many are quick to remind the youth to be job creators. If that is the case then it is only right to allow the youth to be creative. Let those who think they can sing, sing. Let those who are good with the paint brush, paint. When creativity is allowed to thrive, the sky is the limit. I am sure many of you have watched the Ugandan music video (Sitya Loss) that went viral thanks to the superb dancing skills of some ‘ghetto kids.’ Avenues for all this to thrive are very important. We need more community sports facilities, art galleries and dance studios. You will be amazed at just how many youths will be kept off the streets or from being idle once a basketball court is constructed in their community. When youth are not doing anything meaningful then they become a menace to society. As we struggle to equip the youth with skills we should also give them avenues to exploit their natural talents for the betterment of their lives and their communities. As long as they are not breaking any laws they can turn out great.

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Yes, give the youth space to be creative and useful