Madam,

It is heartbreaking to watch young people at Sikhuphe standing at Entandweni Dam, not for recreation, not for sport, but for survival. When a country’s youth must depend on fishing just to have something to eat with maize meal, it is not just a personal struggle - it is a national crisis.

We are talking about young people living right next to the King Mswati III International Airport, a symbol that was meant to represent development, opportunity and economic growth. Yet, the very community that hosts this massive infrastructure project is casting hooks into a dam just to avoid going to bed hungry. What kind of development is this, where progress flies overhead while poverty remains firmly on the ground?

In a country blessed with natural resources and potential, why are young people saying they are not asking for handouts, only for jobs and skills? That is not laziness. That is dignity. That is a generation saying, ‘give us a chance.’ Fishing for survival should not be a full-time occupation for able-bodied, ambitious youth. It should be a hobby. It should be a side activity. Instead, it has become a lifeline because opportunities are scarce and unemployment continues to suffocate hope in rural communities.

What hurts even more is that these young people are not even selling the fish. They are not trying to build businesses from it. They are simply trying to eat. ‘Maize meal without relish is no meal at all,’ they said - and that sentence alone speaks volumes about the depth of poverty many families are facing.

Eswatini does not lack intelligence. It does not lack hardworking young people. It does not lack dreams. What it lacks is inclusive development. Big projects must translate into local employment. Airports must mean jobs for nearby communities. National wealth must mean improved living standards for ordinary citizens.

The youth of Sikhuphe are not asking for luxury. They are asking for work.

They are asking to be trained. They are asking to participate in the development that is happening in their own backyard. That is not rebellion -  that is a reasonable demand.

A nation cannot move forward while its young people are stuck between empty hooks and uncertain tomorrows. If we truly care about the future of Eswatini, we must prioritise job creation, skills training and fair access to opportunities. Because when hunger becomes normal, hope becomes fragile.

Also, a country without hope in its youth is a country standing on very thin ice.

In a country blessed with natural resources and potential, why are young people saying they are not asking for handouts, only for jobs and skills? That is not laziness.