Youth Capital has called on the Department of Employment and Labour (DEL) and the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) to expedite the release of funds for the Basic Education Employment Initiative (BEEI). The initiative aims to hire teacher assistants to support learners in schools across South Africa.
During the 2024 Budget Speech, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana allocated a significant R61.4 billion for employment programms. This includes R7.4 billion for the Presidential Employment Initiative (PES), which is equivalent to a year's worth of funding.
Research conducted by SALDRU has shown that the BEEI has boosted local economies, increasing spending and wages in project areas. Since its inception in 2020, the initiative has created over 1.7 million work opportunities, providing support to learners in more than 20,000 schools across the nine provinces.
Since its inception in 2020, it has created over 1.7 million work opportunities; specifically, the BEEI provided support to learners in over 20,000 schools across the nine provinces, in both rural and urban areas, through the role of teachers’ assistants and general maintenance assistants.
Delays Cause Concern
Despite these allocations, Youth Capital says there has been an unnecessary delay in the release of funds from the UIF. This delay has created uncertainty among young people, who are increasingly vulnerable to scams targeting job seekers.
It was communicated with Youth Capital that the funds for the PES would come from the UIF. It’s now the end of August and details haven’t been shared. Since our letter was sent, we haven’t yet heard back from the DEL nor the UIF’
SAYouth, a popular platform for public employment positions, has also been affected by fraudulent job ads. This has further eroded young people's trust in online job postings.
SAYouth has been the preferred platform for public employment positions. However, in July fraudulent job ads have infiltrated the platform too, so young people are unable to trust these posts either –this news has received coverage in the media too.
Youth Capital Demands Action
Youth Capital is urging the government to provide clear communication and release the funds urgently. The organisation emphasises the positive impact that the PES and BEEI have had on the economy and the lives of young people in South Africa.
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