In the current debate cm the future of South African youth, opposing viewpoints advocate "positive" programmes to remedy the problem of youth alienation. This paper addresses the youth question from the viewpoint of pro-social youth clubs in the development process. The authors contend that pro-social youth clubs fulfil a bridging function by providing positive reference groups for young people as they mature. At the individual level of analysis, the paper explores the motivations to participate in youth club activities, the process of forming new clubs or joining existing ones, and how participation is sustained. A sample survey of motivations to participate in club life was conducted among 600 black youth in the Durban Functional Region in 1993. Club life was observed among 42 informal clubs participating in a youth development initiative over a five-year period. A tracer study of the 42 youth clubs, involved mainly in the performing arts, sports, church related and community service activities, examined the turnover of membership in clubs. The study found that young people are particularly attracted to clubs which further their skills and talents and personal development Group cohesion acted as an attractive force to join informal clubs. Non-participants in youth clubs wished to remain "uninvolved". The tracer study indicated that youth gravitate to strong and cohesive groups. Strong groups were characterised by public recognition of success in their chosen field of activity; cohesive groups by a spirit of respect and tolerance toward peers. The paper discusses a youth initiative, the Youth Centre Project (YCP), to build strong youth clubs in the Durban region. It is concluded that informal clubs, owing to their capacity to adapt to the changing needs of youth, make an important contribution to the integration of young people into democratic society in South Africa.
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