As the 2028 National Assembly Elections draw near, one message is fast emerging as the soul of the campaign: self-reliance or economic independence. The call for economic independence echoes powerfully across a nation tired of leaning outward and let down by mismanagement within.
But, for this message to rise above the noise of political theatre, it must be more than a slogan shouted from podiums or printed in glossy manifestos.
It requires something far greater; it calls for us.
It demands a generation, our generation, to step forward with clarity, courage, and unwavering determination. If the youth falter now or grow complacent, this moment will be lost. Economic independence will be stripped of its substance and paraded as a hollow catchphrase, repurposed by vote-hungry politicians with no intention of real change.
That is precisely why the dialogues we are convening, which will culminate in the adoption of the Independence Charter, are not only timely; they are urgent.
This Charter will not be merely a document. It will be a declaration of intent. A rallying cry. A refusal to be silent as our future is sold to the highest bidder or squandered by leaders blinded by short-term gain. It will be our pledge to root the idea of economic independence in action, not abstraction; in vision, not vanity.
Through this Charter, we will not be asking for permission to lead, we will be claiming our place as the builders of a self-reliant nation.
The stakes: Why self-reliance matters
Economic independence is not a lofty ideal, it is the bedrock of a dignified and sovereign future. For far too long, our nation has been shackled by foreign loans, volatile markets, and exploitative agreements that serve external interests while hollowing out our own. This dependency has stifled innovation, weakened local industries, and left thousands of young people trapped in a cycle of unemployment and underemployment.
The promise of self-reliance is the promise of freedom. It is the commitment to build an economy that serves our people first, an economy that nurtures talent, harnesses local resources, and fuels collective prosperity.
But the path to self-reliance is not paved with good intentions alone. It demands bold, unwavering reforms; investment in local industries, transformation of our education system, and the creation of innovation ecosystems that empower entrepreneurs and visionaries. It calls for courageous leadership, leaders who choose legacy over popularity, who build for the next generation, not just the next election. Most of all, it requires a cultural shift: a shared awakening to the reality that our destiny is not in the hands of foreign powers or fleeting political promises, but in our own.
The risk: Rhetoric over action
The danger is not hypothetical, it is urgent and real. Without sustained pressure and principled leadership, the call for self-reliance risks being reduced to just another performance in the theatre of politics. We have seen this script before: noble ideals paraded in manifestos, only to be forgotten in the corridors of power.
Photo ops at factories and token youth grants are not solutions, they are distractions. Half-measures won’t build the future we need. Superficial reforms won’t free us. What we need is systemic change, and systemic change requires a movement.
This is where the youth come in, not as props, not as slogans, but as protagonists. We are not merely the future, we are the pulse of the present. We hold the numbers, the energy, and the imagination to lead. But our real power lies not just in our demographics, it lies in our ability to organise, to envision, and to act.
Complacency is our greatest threat. If we do not lead, we will be led, often astray. If we do not speak, we will be spoken for. If we do not build, we will watch our future be dismantled by those with no stake in it.
The Independence Charter: A blueprint for action
That is why the dialogues we are leading, across districts, campuses, and digital platforms, matter. These are not echo chambers of frustration. They are incubators of solutions. They are the forge from which the Independence Charter will emerge.
The Charter will not be just another document. It will be a living declaration, a vision backed by action, a call backed by policy. It will demand bold investments in local production, from revitalising agriculture to scaling tech innovation. It will call for an education system that doesn’t just hand out certificates, but equips young people with the skills to lead, build, and thrive in a global economy. It will insist on transparency in the management of public resources to ensure that national wealth serves our communities, not the whims of elites or foreign shareholders.
Above all, the Charter will be rooted in inclusion, lifting the voices of those too often left behind, from rural farmers to urban youth navigating informal economies.
But more than a list of demands, the Charter will be a statement of ownership. By drafting and adopting it, we are not asking for a seat at the table, we are taking it. We are declaring, without apology or hesitation, that the future belongs to those who dare to shape it.
We are not here to inherit a broken system. We are here to transform it.
Leading with clarity and conviction
As the march toward the 2028 National Assembly Elections accelerates, a battlefield of competing narratives lies ahead. The noise will be deafening. The temptation to retreat into cynicism or apathy will be real and seductive. But make no mistake: cynicism is a luxury we cannot afford, and apathy is a betrayal of the future we claim to fight for.
The dialogues and the forthcoming Independence Charter are not endpoints; they are the ignition. To elevate self-reliance from a political buzzword to the cornerstone of our nation’s rebirth, we must convert vision into momentum and momentum into change.
First, we must amplify the Charter’s message. Use every microphone, every smartphone, every street corner and social feed to challenge candidates and leaders to embrace its principles, not in word, but in policy and action.
Second, we must organise, across villages and towns, across campuses and cooperatives, across cultures and classes. Self-reliance cannot be achieved by isolated voices. It demands a unified, unwavering chorus.
Third, we must lead by example. Let us champion local enterprise, cultivate innovation, and revive civic engagement in our own spaces. Every youth cooperative formed, every skill mastered, every act of resistance against corruption, these are bricks in the foundation of the nation we are building.
And finally, we must hold ourselves accountable. Leadership is not measured in perfection, but in perseverance. We will stumble. We will be tested. But as long as we remain rooted in purpose and united in action, we cannot be defeated.
The 2028 Elections are more than a contest for parliamentary seats, they are a referendum on our national identity. They will determine whether Lesotho remains tethered to dependency or rises to define its future with dignity and resolve.
Self-reliance is not a slogan. It is a moral imperative. An economic necessity. A generational demand. The Independence Charter is our line in the sand, our declaration that we refuse to be spectators in the theatre of our nation’s destiny. It is our promise to future generations that we dared to dream, and then dared even more to act.
To the youth of Lesotho: this is our moment. Not tomorrow. Not someday. Now. Let us lead with clarity. Let us act with conviction. Let us build a country that stands tall, independent, resilient, and unapologetically ours.
The dialogues are alive. The Charter is coming. The nation is watching.
Lesotho activist and journalist who is the Chairperson of the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) Lesotho. He is an International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) alumnus.
Boloetse is driven by the need to protect and promote the rights of others, especially the marginalized segment of society. He rose to prominence as an activist in 2018 when he wrote to Lesotho communications Authority (LCA) asking it to order Econet Telecom Lesotho (ETL) and Vodacom Lesotho (VCL) to stop charging expensive out-of-bundle rates for data when customers’ data bundles get depleted.
