The founder of Afrikan Young Indigenous Leader (AYIL), Dr Nikiwe Bam, confirmed that AYIL would be launched at Emaqwathini Great Place in Nkondlo Administrative Area in Ngcobo, on July 1, 2023.
According to Bam, they have been prepared for this launch since lockdown, but kept postponing due to circumstances.
“The launch is going to be provincial because we are launching this AYIL in the Eastern Cape. We are going to introduce the structure and committees, and we are going to have people from different regions in the Eastern Cape.
“Structures from regions in this province will have branches. Our work must be groundwork; we must work on the grassroots. The programmes we are creating must be aligned to traditional authorities,” said Bam.
She said that they believe that traditional leaders need to travel in order to be open-minded, to learn from each other, to copy good practices and implement them in their own communities.
“They will also earn respect if they do so, because they are not just going to mingle, they will also bring fresh ideas to the people they are leading. We are calling upon all people interested in being part of this revival and restoration of our African dignity to come to form part of us, when we are launching this initiative.”
Bam indicated that AYIL was started in 2016 with the aim of uniting Africans. She said that they saw that they were not given enough opportunities to work within other structures.
She said that as AYIL their focus is on doing programmes with the traditional leaders.
“We cannot have programmes with traditional leaders and leave out the communities. It is the community that we are reviving to support traditional leaders, and we also include young people.
“For instance, if you are talking about traditional dances, workshops and educational programmes, all those are focused on the youth.
“We also have youth representatives, so that they can address all the youth challenges and look into traditions and customs, moral regeneration, and teenage pregnancy.
“There are strategies in place for teenage pregnancy, like Inkciyo in the Eastern Cape, Amatshitshi KwaZulu-Natal and Imbali in Swaziland.”
Bam said that they want all these groups of young girls and boys to connect as one, and share their knowledge and skills as well.
She said that they are promoting such organisations and groups, and including the information that is out there because they are the key players in terms of restoring their cultures.
