‘We Know The Constitution’ Campaign goes to Westlea

The WELEAD Team is working to eliminate youth constitution illiteracy in Zimbabwe, and recently the team was in Westlea, a Harare West suburb, with 36 youths attending the workshop.

Zimbabwe: The WELEAD Team is working to eliminate youth constitution illiteracy in Zimbabwe.

Last Thursday, 2 June 2022, the WELEAD team was in Westlea, a Harare West suburb, with 36 youths attending the workshop.

Before the workshop, 13 of the 36 youths rated their understanding of the constitution as 0-4 on a scale of 10.

“It is sad that even we the educated youths, associate the constitution with law students, and in most cases, we only know clauses to do with our degrees only. A media studies student can be well-versed with the Access to information Chapter 62 only,” said Yolanda Chitate.

Constitutional issues affect our lives on a daily basis, and young people must understand this, she added.

“We feel our work has a positive impact in the communities of Zimbabwe based on the experience of this campaign on constitutionalism,” said Faith Chatiza.

She added that when young people are given information, they actively participate.

Constitutional materials (hard copies) are distributed at each workshop, and young people are encouraged to share the information with their peers in other communities.

Young people who attended these workshops expressed an interest in spreading information as opinion leaders in various communities.

“It is good that the WELEAD team provides fliers with information we can pass to our friends and family, which will help us to explain the constitution,” said Fadzai Nyakunengwa.

Youth constitution illiteracy has been prevalent in Zimbabwe due to a variety of factors such as education level, language, and accessibility, among others.

Workshops and walking campaigns have demonstrated that young people in Zimbabwe are not ignorant of their constitution, but there is an information gap, and it is everyone's responsibility to bridge this gap, as stated in section 7 of the constitution.