Platform for Youth Development (PYD) is a non-profit making organization that was legally registered as a Trust in October 2008. It is an award winning community based organization, having received the Human Rights and Democracy Award, sponsored by Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition.
PYD is a non-partisan and non-discriminatory organization that was formed to act as a platform, network and bridge for Zimbabwean youth in all spheres of life to articulate issues affecting them as youth and particularly issues relating to sustainable development, good governance and the rule of law in Zimbabwe.
The vision of PYD is an empowered youth working towards sustainable development and transformation in Zimbabwe. Its mission is to mobilise and empower young women and men in Manicaland through lobbying, advocacy and capacity building to promote social transformation and sustainability. Among its core values are professionalism (transparency, integrity, accountability, fairness); Gender equity and equality; Team work, non-partisanship and nonviolence.
PYD is a member of Zimbabwe Youth Council, Crisis Coalition in Zimbabwe and the Youth Empowerment and Transformation Trust (YETT). It is a grassroots and membership-driven organization led by young people in Zimbabwe. The organization is currently operating in Chipinge with a membership of over 10 000 reflected in the database. Platform for Youth Development depends on its various members to implement programmes in most cases on voluntary basis.
Major decisions of the organization are made by the seven-member board in liaison with a secretariat of five staff members .The board meets at least three times a year to review policy and programming. The day-to-day work of the Platform for Youth Development is done by a dedicated and qualified secretariat, which is led by the Director. The board and secretariat meet regularly for team building and organizational capacity development to ensure a shared vision and purpose at all instances.
At PYD, we perceive ourselves as the voice of the voiceless, the poor, powerless and vulnerable members of society. Through their various programming, PYD has opened up closed communities and raised subdued voices that have always been silenced by the authorities. As a grassroots and community based organization, they are at eye level with the villagers, which makes them effective in our implementation of activities.
Their peace building campaign, which started at inception, is ongoing. In trying to reconcile perpetrators and victims` families, they organize various memorial services for victims who passed away during the 2008 political violence.
PYD members were also mobilised to construct thatched huts for all those villagers whose homes were totally destroyed by the perpetrators of violence in 2008. The huts were constructed using the natural resources surrounding the area. PYD heavily relies on its activists who are located in churches, schools and local communities. The activists are locally available and purposeful in their accomplishment of given tasks and responsibilities. This is because they believe that the fight for socio economic justice can only be set in motion by powerful incentives at the grassroots level.
