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Umsobomvu Youth Fund

Umsobomvu assists job seekers

Sat, 18 Sep 2004 11:00

The profiles would allow young people to be accessible by interested businesses and give the youth exposure to job, learnership and entrepreneurial opportunities.

Those who are interested can log on to www.youthportal.org.za or call youth-connect on 08600 96884 to register.

UYF's Senior Programme Manager Derek Smith says they hope that by November young people would also be able to register by filling in forms that will be available at Post Offices, the Department of Labour's Labour Centres, Multi Purpose Community Centres and UYF Advisory Centres.

Mr Smith adds that the UYF initiated the registration process through the online portal and youth-connect with the intention of incorporating young people into the Jobs and Opportunities Seekers Database.

"The database would link them to a list of jobs, skills training and entrepreneurial opportunities currently under development. UYF has also taken the idea of a graduates database a step further by expanding it to include all unemployed youth," he said.

Chief Executive Officer of UYF Malose Kekana says the database will not only benefit unemployed youth looking for work but will also assist employers offering bursaries or scholarships.

"I believe the database will become a powerful tool to unlock the potential of South Africa's unemployed youth," he says.

The Umsobomvu Youth Fund is a government supported organisation and was established in 2001 to create a platform for job creation and skills development for the South African youth.

UYF has set up three major programmes namely, Contact Information and Counselling (CIC), Skills Development and Transfer and Youth Entrepreneurship.

The CIC programme gives young people access to information and counseling support while the Skills Development and Transfer programme equips them with skills to access sustainable living and offers clearly defined job opportunities.

The youth entrepreneurship programme facilitates economic participation by helping young people access sustainable business opportunities through funding and business development services.

UYF has committed approximately R500-million to 90 projects countrywide over the past 36 months.

Source: BuaNews