President Cyril Ramaphosa also announced 235,000 work opportunities through initiatives such as SAYouth.mobi – a big step. However, temporary work is not the same as sustainable employment.
Too often, these programmes lack transparency on retention and career progression. How many of these roles offer a living wage? How many transition into permanent employment? If we are serious about tackling youth unemployment, job creation must be linked to upskilling, mentorship and career mobility, ensuring young workers are not stuck in low-paying, short-term placements.
The private sector has a direct stake in solving youth unemployment – not just as a corporate responsibility, but as an economic necessity. Businesses already serve young people as consumers; they should also engage them as future employees, entrepreneurs and innovators.
Making entry-level opportunities, bursaries and learnerships more visible is key. Too often, young jobseekers are unaware of corporate-sponsored training programmes. Digital outreach, awareness campaigns and skills-based incentives could help bridge this gap – such as offering discounted mobile data or financial services for completing accredited training.
The Women in Farming programme, in partnership with Agri SA, provides young women with the training, funding and business support needed to transform small agricultural enterprises into sustainable businesses. Our partnerships with WeThinkCode_ and Life Choices Academy are equipping young people with digital skills and job placements, ensuring they are prepared for a fast-evolving tech economy.
Our collaboration with the National Business Initiative (NBI) is focused on the development of skilled artisans, who work on plumbing and solar installation projects.
These are the kinds of industry-led interventions that must scale if SA is to create sustainable, long-term employment pathways for its youth.
