There is no doubt that South Africa is producing a new generation of leaders. Our universities are full of them. One just has to look at their email signatures to know:
SRC President
Founder of XYZ company
Best Student Entrepreneur in SA
Allan Gray Fellow
Brightest Young Minds Alumni
Inventor of ABC
If this is the calibre of graduate we are producing – a progressive, socially conscious citizen of the world, then why are we still backlogged and burdened with pseudo-leaders who are more like soap opera actors, providing cheap entertainment at the cost of many, and undoing the magic of Madiba?
Jonathan Jansen, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the University of the Free State, says, “Even to the most disinterested observer of South African society, it is abundantly clear that our country has a crisis of leadership. This is not simply a crisis of political leadership, but also a crisis of parental leadership, of corporate leadership, of religious leadership, and of educational leadership… In a crisis, exemplary leadership matters… Simply put, there can be no social change without personal change. Our salvation will not lie with governmental leadership (which is increasingly a parasitic leadership) but with the profound leadership that each of us brings to our communities, our organisations and our country.”
Some talking points to consider:
- Is it possible to make politics a respectable and attractive profession for talented young graduates with a track record for creating positive change? Give examples of where this is working in other contexts.
- Where is the political opposition youth leadership and why are they so quiet?
- Give examples of international precedent that addresses successful youth leadership on a national scale? Can it be adapted within the South African context?
Inspiration: articles by Jonathan Jansen
Leadership comes from within article
My South Africa article
Image: Fortune, Time, CNN 2010 Global Forum on Africa, panel discussion between The Elders (Bishop Tutu, Mary Robinson (ex-prime minister Ireland), Graca Machel and The ‘Youngers’, (Spencer Horne: African Leadership Academy, Gertrude Kitongo, CIDA)