CREATING JOBS FOR OUR YOUTH
We must wonder if South Africans even bat an eyelid anymore when they hear about the rising youth unemployment figures. Itumeleng Mogaki takes a look at some local initiatives helping to create jobs and business opportunities for the youth
Amy Foundation teaches sewing and design skills.
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he burden of unemployment is concentrated among the youth who account for 65.5 per cent of the total number of unemployed persons, according to Stats SA’s latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey. To some, these are just numbers; to others, a grave concern; and to those directly affected, a painful reality. We spoke to government youth development agencies and local community-based nongovernmental organisations about the local initiatives they have started to help create jobs for SA youth.
LGYDF The Local Government Youth Development Forum (LGYDF) is a multistakeholder partnership that advocates for the total institutionalisation of youth development in the local government sector. Chairperson Thapelo Maleke shares information about several of the forum’s programmes. “We are a partnership of youth development practitioners on a mission
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Within these partnerships, the LGYDF has five focus areas: • Youth Engage is the first programme started by LGYDF before the outbreak of COVID-19. It is the organisation’s flagship project that assists young people residing in rural and urban areas to connect and engage with opportunity providers, in other words, SETAs, the national student financial aid scheme, and government youth agencies as well as the private sector, regarding bursaries, learnerships, internships, employment, and entrepreneurship. • Seminars and webinars: These target young people to tell them about opportunities in the energy and water sectors. • Youth in Rural Development Outreach Programme stems from the challenge and to empower young people to take charge realisation of the rural to urban migration in leading development, particularly in the by young people. That leaves townships municipal spaces and villages where they live,” and villages with no youth capacity. says Maleke. “We target councillors and mayors Government is implored to offer skills and under the age of 35, young professionals and work opportunities in rural and village entrepreneurs, disabled youth in municipalities areas so young people don’t all flock to and villages, youth development and young urban centres. women organisations, and Sector Education • Quality skills provision. Done in and Training Authorities (SETAs) because partnership with SETAs, this aims to their major mandate is skills development, “ assist women, children, and people with he explains. disabilities with training and accreditation The LGYDF has signed a collaboration to become facilitators and moderators. agreement with the Energy and Water Sector This initiative creates a pipeline of those Education Training Authority (EWSETA) as well skills in local communities so people don’t as with other SETAs. have to travel to urban areas because there are no facilitators or moderators in their rural areas. • Career guidance expos is a programme designed for high school learners, exposing them to various careers ranging from agriculture, water, and energy to banking. Maleke says with regards to the fourth industrial revolution, NYDA works with the Softstart Business and Technology Incubator. Thapelo Maleke “We wish to introduce more young people
ISSUE 39
2022/06/30 3:44 PM
