The Main Barriers to Youth Political Participation in Botswana

Abstract

Youth participation in elections should not only be limited to voting, they must be seen as potential leaders with the capability of contributing to the progress of society. This paper explores the main barriers to youth political participation in Botswana and uses a qualitative approach to assess the barriers youth face in politics. In-depth interviews were used to collect data from civil society organizations, political parties, academia, and government. The results reveal that young people find themselves in political parties dominated by elders, with fewer resources exacerbated by high unemployment, blocking their meaningful political participation. The lack of civic education, political socialisation, societal attitude and mentality towards the youth further affects their behaviour towards politics. Moreover, youth are also part of the problem because of their perception of politics and failure to invest in their political careers to make a meaningful contribution.