The Gauteng Provincial Government has partnered with the Nasi iSpani mass employment programme to extend the employment contracts of 32,000 young people as teaching assistants in the province
With more than 4.6 million unemployed youth and a youth unemployment rate of 43.4%, these programmes are critical.
These youth were previously part of governments Basic Education Employment Initiative (BEEI). The initiative created more than 1 million opportunities for youth in the country over the four phases of its implementation. However, youth who benefited from the initiative were not permitted to participate in the youth employment programme in subsequent phases.
Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi said the main purpose of the programme is to reduce unemployment in Gauteng. This follows a backlash from some opposition parties who have said re-hiring these youth is part of the governing party's electioneering campaign.
These are young people that were recorded by national government and their contracts came to an end. We felt that we can’t have 32 000 people unemployed, when they’ve done so well. So people if they say its election work, it’s unfortunate
Combating Youth Unemployment
During last week's State of The Nation Address, President Cyril Ramaphosa praised the work being done by the government through the Presidential Employment Stimulus in combating youth unemployment. The BEEI formed part of the initiative under the President Youth Employment Initiative
The president provides details on the The SAYouth.mobi service which is a free online portal connecting young people to various opportunities, the YES programme and work being with the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA).
With more than 4.6 million unemployed youth in South Africa and a youth unemployment rate of 43.4%, these programmes are critical.
Careerbox Africa’s Lizelle Strydom while there are various government strategies aimed at reducing youth unemployment, it's never enough. This as millions of young people are unemployed in the country.
There's always more that is going to be needed.
Strydom believes that speed is critical in creating opportunities for young people. They suggest a reduction in red tape, speeding up hiring processes and seeking opportunities for businesses to support government efforts through practices like impact sourcing.
Impact sourcing is a business practice by which companies hire and provide career development opportunities to individuals from marginalised communities.
The emphasis on speed is critical as every year more jobseekers labour market.
Speed is one of them in terms of how quickly we can get things... we don't have the luxury of time.
