Patrick Jass joined the Boka-Family in February 2010 when he attended the Ambassador Training in Cape Town.

He stood out as an ambitious young man with massive dreams and a love for his community. He was very interested in youth projects and engaged in youth campaigns in his hometown of Klerksdorp, Northwest. He was passionate about music and entertainment; always put other’s needs first and had a zest for life. Patrick was an amazing young leader in the BBR campaign and will be missed dearly by everyone who knew him. The Boka-Family may have lost a dear member, but Patrick will live in our hearts forever.

We will keep Patrick’s family and friends in our thoughts and prayers.

RIP Patrick.

May 1989- April 2012

The Bokamoso Ba Rona (Our Future) Summit 2012 Workshop will prepare young people to share their issues and interventions with key decision makers.

The Bokamoso Ba Rona (BBR) National Youth Campaign was launched by the South African Parliament in 2009 and reaches young people from across country. The campaign is driven by the Parliamentary Millennium Programme (PMP), the nation building initiative of the South African Parliament established to find creative ways of engaging South Africans on issues that continue to impede progress.

The BBR Campaign officially entered its third and final phase with a Preparatory Workshop designed to equip nominees, with [expert] technical knowledge and creative presentation skills. It is expected that these newly acquired skills will help the participating youth to persuade strategic partners to support interventions they have designed. An opportunity for their presentations will be created in Parliament at a planned national Summit later this year. This Preparatory Workshop took place from 1-5 April 2012 on the iconic Robben Island and was attended by youth from all nine provinces.

The Workshop allowed for facilitated conversations between the attending youth and well-known specialists, and political, economic and social commentators, around progress made with some of the interventions identified during the BBR Youth Dialogue Forums held in 2011. Interventions taken with regard to the four major themes of the campaign (Education, Health, Crime & Unemployment), was reflected on and adapted to ensure it remains relevant and resonates with priorities on the national Agenda.

The team of specialists, who have all contributed significantly to policy formulation in South Africa, are revered for their insight and ability to influence both perspectives and policy.

They include:

As mentioned, the adapted and/or new interventions taken at the workshop will be presented to key decision makers at a 2012 Youth Summit.

This is yet another example of how the BBR Campaign is providing a platform for young people to raise concerns and to collectively, come up with creative and sustainable ways of addressing the problems that they face in their daily lives. The campaign also brings participants closer to key decision makers in order to influence legislation and have their voices heard at the highest levels. In doing so, the BBR campaign contributes greatly towards achieving Parliament’s vision of building an effective People’s Parliament.

For more information on the BBR Campaign, please contact Mr. S. Grobbelaar on: Tel (021) 403 8126 OR Email sgrobbelaar@parliament.gov.za

One of our most active Ambassadors has been selected to attend the Global Changemakers Euro-Africa Youth Summit. The Summit will be held in Brussels, Belgium from 22-28 June 2012. He was one of only 60 successful applicants (1500 people from all over the world applied).

Wishing you the best of luck. Keep the Bokka name flying high in Brussels!

Bozza is the newest Mobihood on the block. By downloading this application on your phone you can stay in contact with friends, artists, celebs and entrepreneurs. You have access to your favourite music, news, poetry, stories and everything that is hot and happening on the African continent.

It’s free, easy, accessible and available to you! Get the app and have the world at your fingertips…literally just a click away. The possibilities with Bozza are endless! It’s a must for artists, storytellers, poets, musicians, entrepreneurs, educators, businesses, news junkies and people on the go.

Visit their Facebook page now for more information at http://www.facebook.com/beBozza

And be sure to download the free app here: http://bozza.mobi/

Be sure to tune in to your favourite community radio station tomorrow evening between 18:00 and 19:00. Buddies from across the country will be chatting to various Ministers as to what they have planned for the year ahead. These Buddies form part of a nationwide project which runs from the State of the Nation Address (9 February 2012) until the National Budget Speech (22 February 2012). In collaboration with Government Communications and Information System (GCIS) we wish to encourage each and every South African to take part in the debates and discussions.

These community radio stations are scattered across the country:

There are

• 15 in the Western Cape;
• 14 in the Eastern Cape;
• 4 in the Northern Cape;
• 6 in the Free State;
• 5 in KwaZulu-Natal;
• 8 in Mpumalanga;
• 7 in Limpopo;
• 7 in North West and
• 8 in Gauteng

These Buddies will take part in tomorrow’s media briefing:

• Naki Makhubele
• Yaseen Bhoola
• Jerome Izaaks
• Anele Leve
• Karabo Monatisi
• Sinazo Peters
• Yonelisa Gova

Don’t miss it, tune in tomorrow!

The annual State of the Nation Address took place at Parliament on the 9^th of February 2012. In the President’s Address he sets out governments plans for the coming year. He also focuses on achievements and progress made in the past year and highlights important issues that will be addressed in the coming year. A complete copy of the President’s speech and some pictures taken at this prestigious event follow below. Let us know what you think of the speech and the event. How do you rate the speech and what do you think of government’s plans for the coming year? Were there any issues that he failed to address and what do you think of the issues that he did address?

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Click here to download President Zuma’s SONA Speech 2012

Kasi Yet Classy, one of the best upcoming local hip-hop bands is a force to be reckoned with! Congratulations to our fellow Buddy, Asanda Ace Africander, for the successes achieved thus far.

If you haven’t heard their new song, PreMeditated Murder, where have you been? Check it out right now! Come on peeps, let’s support our fellow Buddy by liking and sharing his page.

Check it out here!

We would like to formally congratulate the 8 Buddies who were successful in their application for the Activate Leadership and Public Innovation campaign.

The BBR team is extremely proud!

For the next year they will attend training courses, participate in activities and complete assignments that will enhance their leadership- and innovation skills. Valuable knowledge will be bestowed upon them and I am sure that they will benefit tremendously from participating in this programme.

We wish you the best of luck for the year ahead. Keep the Bokamoso Ba Rona name flying high!

Below is a short Bio of each of the Buddies:

Baxolise Jnr Dlali

Baxolise hails from the Cofimvaba rural area in the friendly province of the Eastern Cape. He currently resides in East London where he is the Executive Director and leader of the non-profit organization, Masifunde Together, which he founded in 2006.

Masifunde Together means ‘let us learn together’ and focuses on educating the youth through tutoring classes for High School pupils. His passion for and work with young people has enabled him to participate in various national and international youth concentric discussions, encounters and trainings. He is a sport fanatic and enjoys watching and playing Rugby, Cricket, Hockey and Table Tennis.

Facebook Friends: 909

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Lusanda Melody Mfaxa

This 26-year old lady is from De Aar in the Northern Cape. She has been living there with her family all of her life. Melody matriculated from the Monwabisi S.S.School. She is currently working at NEHAWU as regional administrator. One of her heroes is Itumeleng Khune. In her spare time she listens to Gospel Music and Reggae.

Facebook Friends: 506

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Vasha Thakur

This vibrant 21-year old is a student of Horticulture at the Durban University of Technology. Her hometown of Chatsworth in Kwa-Zulu Natal hosts the largest number of Indians in the world, outside of India. She is passionate about conservation and sees herself as an activist for the environment. Vasha enjoys listening to rock music, reading and making beaded jewellery.

Facebook Friends: 548

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Pearl Pillay

Pearl Pillay was born in Chatsworth, Kwa-Zulu Natal and currently studies at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. She is in her third year of studying Politics and International Relations. She is the President of Amnesty International at Wits and an avid activist for Greenpeace. As if this is not enough, she volunteers at the Chatsworth Youth Centre and she is a member of the Chatsworth Anti-Drug Forum.

Facebook Friends: 914

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Koko July

This well-spoken and passionate young man comes from Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape. He matriculated in 2008 and still lives in Port Elizabeth. He is a Christian and looks to people such as Ghandi, Mandela and Obama for inspiration.

Facebook Friends: 724

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Karabo Klaas Monatisi

Karabo was born in Morija, a town in Lesotho.  He lived in Khayelitsha and matriculated at the Joe Slovo Comprehensive School in 2002. He enrolled at the Rekenaarskool (Computer School) in Boland in 2005 and also completed his studies in Digital Video Editing at City Varsity in 2011.

Facebook Friends: 3339

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George Booysen

George was born on the 26^th of October 1992 in the windy and friendly city of Port Elizabeth.  He Matriculated from D.F. Malherbe High School in 2010. George is currently a dancer at Young Evolution. In his spare time he enjoys dancing, drama and debating.

Facebook Friends: 485

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Tony Mathipa

Tony was born and raised in Soweto in Gauteng. He matriculated from the Mokgome Secondary School in 2007 and now lives in Kensington in Johannesburg. He is the President of the Non-profit Organisation, Youth for Human Rights South Africa. The organisation educates the youth about their human rights, based on the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Facebook Friends: 706

]]> http://www.bokabuddies.co.za/wordpress/archives/1526/feed 0 http://www.bokabuddies.co.za/wordpress/archives/1517 http://www.bokabuddies.co.za/wordpress/archives/1517#comments Fri, 04 Nov 2011 16:37:51 +0000 Lucky http://www.bokabuddies.co.za/wordpress/?p=1517

As part of National Government week, the Westonaria Public Library recently visited grade 6 pupils from Venterspos Primary School. The kids were excited to learn more about their government and were given the opportunity to discuss issues in their community.

Naturally, URTURN magazine was the star of the day and the kids really enjoyed their free copies!