The IFP Youth Brigade Conference applauds the fact that education and training have been championed by the IFP for 26 years and are necessary for South Africa to become a successful and dynamic player in the global economy and resolves:

1. That youth training centres that give learners important training skills should be decentralised to all areas including rural areas to ensure the accessibility of education to all the learners of South Africa;

2. That the education curricula should provide for the teaching of entrepreneurship and vocational skills in order that our learners become job creators rather than job seekers;

3. To encourage government to work with the private sector, locally and internationally, to improve the level of education in rural areas;

4. To encourage government to pursue foreign exchange programmes to offer the opportunity for disadvantaged learners to acquire skills and experience which they can bring back to their own communities;

5. That a vigorous process of retooling, re_skilling and sustained mentoring of educators should be introduced in order that they are able to educate effectively and competently; and

6. To promote a culture of learning and a renewed commitment to education at all levels and this entails restoring a spirit of discipline and respect among learners which affirms the authority and role of educators.

Recognizing the threat posed by HIV/AIDS which affects every aspect of our society and our country's potential for success and recognizing that the greatest toll of this disease is among the youth the IFP Youth Brigade

Conference resolves:

1. To recommit itself to the fight against the spread of HIV/AIDS;

2. To call upon the government to intensify appropriate sex education and HIV programmes within all our schools and community institutions;

3. To bring about a mind-set change in our society to inculcate responsible personal behaviour and the promotion of family values; and

4. To assist those infected with the disease and promote a culture of respect and care.

The IFP Youth Brigade Conference seeking to see youth become productive members of South Africa's workforce as a means to give personal dignity, a sense of worth and the opportunity to make a contribution to the growth of our country's economy, therefore resolves:

1. To promote small, medium and micro-sized enterprises (SMME's) and cooperatives in the fast growing areas of new technologies and the conservation and tourism sectors.

The IFP Youth Brigade Conference noting that the IFP is constantly on the campaign trail and looking ahead to 2004; knowing that the IFP is the political home of every young person willing to make a difference, change the political landscape and lead the struggle for development; confirming that 2004 must be the year of the IFP; and recognizing the youth vote has the potential to change the face of politics, therefore resolves:

1. To take the Party back to the streets in the greatest campaign of mobilization ever seen;

2. To become visible, heard, known and recognized across South Africa as leaders who care about issues;

3. To open up new constituencies and expand our base of support by reaching young people where they are, through combining entertainment and political mobilization;

4. To bring the energy of the youth into branch activities,facilitating greater involvement, activity and initiative; and

5. To organize the Party on a functional basis, following the direction of the new IFP Constitution, by establishing project teams based on issues and not territorial considerations.

The IFP Youth Brigade Conference welcomes the holding of the World Conference Against Racism, Discrimination and Xenophobia in Durban, believing it to highlight South Africa's commitment to move away from an apartheid past and towards the leadership role it may assume in the ongoing fight for social justice and equality throughout the world; recognizes that every young South African can become an agent of change and a revolutionary of goodwill to bring reconciliation and healing to our nation; believing the IFP principles that our diversity is our strength and we are one nation pursuing the same goal of development, prosperity and peace; taking pride in pluralism and cultural diversity; and knowing that we have not yet established the degree of reconciliation and co-operation across racial divides envisaged in our new democratic constitution, therefore resolves:

1. To overcome the legacy of our past by changing the heart sand minds of young South Africans towards embracing our differences;

2. To pursue inter_racial interaction as a means of learning respect for one another, cultivating relationships of trust and receiving anew perspective and a new way of thinking about our world and our position in it;

3. To build bridges across racial divides by seeking common goals and shared vision, promoting the fact that unity is crucial to development;

4. To establish teams to initiate community projects that get young people involved no matter what their race, religion, creed, culture,language or historical background as a means of uniting our youth;

The IFP Youth Brigade Conference, observing that crime is rife and is having a negative impact upon foreign investment and is eroding the social fabric of our communities, therefore resolves:

1. To assist the police by holding one another accountable to abide by the law and speaking up when we know of crimes being committed or planned;

2. To encourage that police services should be decentralized to community level by devolving powers to the provinces; and

3. To promote a culture of respect for the inalienable right to human dignity.

The IFP Youth Brigade Conference is alarmed by the increase in the murder of farmers and the illegal occupation of land. We wholeheartedly condemn this development and resolve:

1. That the law enforcement agencies step up their efforts to stem the tide of criminality and murder; and

2. That the government expedites the land redistribution programme in an equitable manner in order to address the question of landlessness.

The Youth Brigade Conference, acknowledging that dealing in and using drugs is a criminal activity; recognizing the extent of the problem among young people as our world opens up and illegal substances become more readily available; knowing that drugs, alcohol and substance abuse deteriorates the quality of life and diminishes the potential of our youth, therefore resolves:

1. To campaign and foster a generation of addiction-free youth, fully responsible for their own health and nature of their decisions,

2. To promote a culture of personal integrity whereby youth are encouraged to live their best and to give their best;

3. To encourage young people trapped in addictions to seek help and commit to a clean lifestyle;

4. To expose the truth about drugs and substance abuse, revealing the consequences and facts;

5. To establish project teams among branches to investigate ways and means to fight against drugs and substance abuse; and

6. To inspire young people to choose their role models with maturity and good judgement, being fully aware that role models do not make alcohol or drugs cool, less harmful or consequence free.

The IFP Youth Brigade Conference praises His Excellency Prince MG Buthelezi, President of the IFP, and recognises the statesmanship and visionary leadership he continues to give to Party. We therefore resolve:

1. To follow the direction given by the President towards forging a new generation with integrity and commitment to development;

2. To support the President's work at every level of government, promoting the causes he takes up and being ambassadors of his leadership;

3. To pursue the vision the President has bestowed upon the Party;

4. To congratulate the President on the recognition conferred on him by the American Conservative of the Union Charlton Heston Courage Under Fire Award for the extraordinary and principled leadership and integrity he has always demonstrated; and

5. To wish him many happy returns on the occasion of his birthday tomorrow.