First of all, please allow me to pay respects to:

His Majesty King Letsie III, head of state of the Kingdom of Lesotho,

Right Honorable Prime Minister Matekane,

Honorable President of the Senate,

Right Honourable Speaker of the National Assembly,

His Lordship Chief Justice,

Honorable Deputy Prime Minister,

Honorable Nthati Moorosi, Minister of Information, Communications, Science Technology and Innovation,

Honorable Pitso Lesaoana, Minister of Gender, Youth and Social Development,

Excellencies, Heads of Diplomatic Missions and International Relations,

Vibrant Basotho youth entrepreneurs,

Ladies and Gentlemen:

It is a real pleasure and honor to join you today at the 2025 Conference of the Sebabatso Youth Empowerment Initiative. After three years of diligent work, Sebabatso has become a platform that radiates the energy and aspirations of Lesotho’s young generation. Let me commend its achievement and my appreciation to everybody who has been working very hard for the initiative.

Prime Minister Matekane, what a joy to witness the steps of growing up of Sebabatso in just three years. I share your enthusiasm, satisfaction and happiness. Meanwhile, I must say, I’m also very glad and proud to join you in shouldering the responsibility of developing this initiative. My Embassy has been able to provide modest but concrete support to Sebabatso from 2023. Over the past two years, we have supported 30 Basotho youth to travel to China for two-week training programmes. They have gained hands-on experience in fisheries, agriculture, commerce, tourism, manufacturing and management. I am pleased to see that many have returned home not only with new skills but also with new confidence and ambition. Some have already succeeded in setting up their own businesses. Their success stories show that Sebabatso is not just a conference, but a life-changing journey.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Youth entrepreneurship and employment are also an important part of China–Africa cooperation. At the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China–Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) last year, President Xi Jinping proposed the Ten Partnership Actions. The Capacity-Building Partnership focuses precisely on helping African countries, especially young people, to strengthen their own development capacities. This month marks the first anniversary of the Beijing Summit. I am proud to say that China has delivered on its commitments. In Lesotho alone, 380 Basotho friends from various sectors attended, is attending and will attend training programmes in China this year, and more than twenty Basotho students are now pursuing higher education in China on government scholarships. China always delivers what it promises.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

China’s own development journey provides important inspiration for youth empowerment. Over the past four decades, China has lifted more than 800 million people out of poverty — the largest and fastest poverty alleviation achievement in human history. According to China’s official white paper on poverty reduction, this success was achieved not only by providing livelihoods, but also by mobilizing the energy and creativity of young people in rural revitalization, education, innovation, and entrepreneurship. Poverty reduction and youth empowerment go hand in hand. China stands ready to share this experience with Lesotho and other developing countries, because we believe that development is sustainable only when it brings opportunities for the youth.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

As President Xi Jinping has underlined, “youth are the future of a nation and the hope of the world.” Youth are the bridge between vision and reality. The Sebabatso initiative is also aligned with China’s emphasis on youth development in national progress and global cooperation. In line with China’s Global Development Initiative (GDI), we are committed to empowering youth through education and capacity-building programs. Global Security Initiative (GSI) underscores the importance of dialogue and mutual trust in ensuring a peaceful and secure environment for youth to thrive. Global Civilization Initiative (GCI) promotes the exchange and mutual learning among civilizations, fostering an inclusive environment where youth from diverse backgrounds can collaborate and innovate.

Following the above-mentioned three initiatives, the Global Governance Initiative (GGI) proposed by President Xi early this month emphasized that the international society should stay committed to the people-centered approach. As humanity has become a closely intertwined community with a shared future, enhancing global governance is the right choice to share in development opportunities and address global challenges as youth unemployment, which is one of the common challenges in front of us all. This is important to enable young people from all over the world to continuously shape humanity’s future within a more just and equitable global governance system.

In this regard, China has also been working closely with international partners to support capacity-building, youth empowerment and poverty reduction initiatives. Together, we seek to mobilize resources and ideas from across the world, so that no country and no young person is left behind on the path of development. 

In this spirit, Sebabatso itself embodies the principle of “We Grow Together”. It demonstrates that when one side faces challenges, friends and partners rally together; when opportunities arise, we share and grow together. This is the very meaning of a community of shared future for humanity.

My dear young Basotho friends,

You are the future of Lesotho, the future of Africa, and an important part of the future of the world. China will continue to stand by your side. My Embassy will keep working hand in hand with the Government of Lesotho to provide more training, more scholarships, more exchanges, and more opportunities. We will continue to support Sebabatso and all initiatives that empower young people. I wish this Sebabatso conference every success, and the success of all Basotho youth. Your success is Lesotho’s success, and it is also the success of China–Lesotho friendship and strategic partnership.

Thank you. Ke a leboha.