Issued by Thando Malinga on behalf of the FW de Klerk Foundation on 22/08/2025

Recently, in Kempton Park, heads of state from the Southern African region gathered at the Liberation Movements Summit to make a bold declaration: they will not allow the dismantling of African independence through external economic pressure or renewed forms of neocolonial interference. Representatives of SWAPO (Namibia), ZANU-PF (Zimbabwe) and the ANC (South Africa), among others, reaffirmed that sanctions and coercive measures must not be permitted to erode the hard-won democratic gains of liberation. They emphasised that African leaders stand together in solidarity for socio-economic development, not only for their countries, but for the continent.

This united stance is more than diplomatic symbolism. It signals a reawakening of political consciousness at a time when many South Africans – especially the youth – live with the paradox of constitutional promise alongside persistent inequality and unemployment. For the generation born after apartheid, the central questions include: What does African unity mean in the twenty-first century and can this solidarity empower the youth? How does the defence of sovereignty against external pressure strengthen, rather than sidestep, our constitutional democracy?

A reawakening of African consciousness must begin with clarity about the moment we are in. Leaders have warned of attempts to undermine African independence through extractive dynamics: the exploitation of raw minerals, trade dependencies that entrench vulnerability, debt arrangements that limit policy space and cultural or technological influence that overlooks local agency. These patterns do not only disrespect the continent’s long struggle for liberation; they also discount Africa’s political and economic sovereignty in a world shaped by rapid technological change. That is why leaders called for unity as a practical shield for African interests in global diplomacy, trade and governance. Differences among allies need not fracture a shared project; the continent’s future must be larger than any single party or personality.

At its core, this summit gestures toward a return to first principles: self-determination, a shared vision for the continent and a fight for economic justice and sovereignty rooted in pan-African thought. The anti-colonial generation taught us that political freedom without economic capacity is fragile. The contemporary version of that insight is simple: solidarity must convert into the daily means by which young Africans can learn, work, trade and build. If sovereignty is to have meaning for the twenty-something generation finishing TVET or starting a micro-enterprise, it must be felt as lower barriers, fairer markets and pathways into regional opportunity.

In South Africa, solidarity cannot substitute for the rule of law. It must be its ally. Our Constitution anchors public power in human dignity, equality and freedom and places a duty on the state to respect, protect, promote and fulfil rights. In one of the most unequal societies in the world, the only durable form of solidarity is one that broadens opportunity, curbs rent-seeking and strengthens the institutions young people rely on for fair competition, skills and a first foothold in the economy. Solidarity that weakens accountability, politicises procurement or closes markets is self-defeating: it narrows the very opportunities that the youth need most.

For this reason, any continental declaration should translate into a practical programme that meets young people where they actually are. When leaving school, entering or completing apprenticeships, experimenting with digital platform work, launching micro-enterprises and looking for ways to sell beyond their own province or country. The African Continental Free Trade Area (“AfCFTA”) is the obvious hinge between intent and impact. Properly implemented, AfCFTA can expand intra-African trade, deepen manufacturing value chains and open services markets in ways that are intensely youth-relevant. But those benefits will not arrive by proclamation. They depend on domestic reforms that lower the cost of doing business, simplify standards and customs, improve logistics and invest consistently in human capital.

A youth-centred reading of solidarity therefore begins at home. Municipalities should make it simpler and safer to operate micro-enterprises by providing: clear, affordable permits; serviced trading spaces; and predictable enforcement. Provinces and national departments should publish roadmaps that link priority value chains, like food processing, light manufacturing, repairs, logistics and digital services, to real cross-border demand under AfCFTA, with time-lines for standards compliance, market entry and skills. Credit ecosystems must evolve too. Small export-order finance and invoice-discounting for youth-owned firms can turn a first customer into a first export, while responsible use of transaction data can support alternative credit scoring. None of this dilutes sovereignty. Instead, it exercises it in the way that matters most to the next generation by opening doors.

At the same time, solidarity worthy of the name strengthens constitutionalism rather than stepping around it. Competition policy and transparent procurement protect entrants from being locked out by incumbents. Clean institutions ensure that opportunity is earned, not allocated through political favour. The more open and fair our rules, the more attractive South African and regional markets become to youth entrepreneurs willing to risk time and talent on new ideas. In this sense, the rule of law is not an impediment to growth, but rather the precondition for inclusive growth that lasts.

There is also a generational imperative we must not ignore. Many unemployed young South Africans report having no previous work experience, which means the first opportunity is often the hardest to secure. The Summit’s language about “defending gains” should be matched by practical bridges across that first gap: apprenticeships with real placements, TVET programmes tied to firm demand, serviced trading hubs near logistics corridors, faster recognition of skills (including micro-credentials) and consistent investment in digital literacy. To keep solidarity honest, the government should publish quarterly, auditable indicators that track youth outcomes linked to regional integration: youth-owned exporters registered, first-time exporters, apprenticeships completed and cross-border contracts in goods and services.

Linking this renewed consciousness to the Constitution creates an inter-generational bridge. The struggle for freedom was never meant to end at the ballot box, it was meant to open the space in which every person could use their talents in dignity. The Constitution holds that space open and it gives us lawful tools to expand it. If a new wave of African solidarity is rising, its flag must be planted firmly in constitutional soil: human dignity, equality, freedom, accountability and the rule of law. That is how sovereignty becomes substance rather than symbol.

The Foundation welcomes genuine African cooperation that strengthens constitutionalism and delivers measurable gains for young people, like more apprenticeships, more first jobs, more youth-owned exporters and more predictable, transparent rules. If, by the next labour release, more young South Africans have crossed the threshold into dignified work, then Kempton Park will have been more than a set of speeches. It will have been a step toward the promise that every young person, in South Africa and across the region, has not only the right, but the real chance, to shape the future in freedom.