One of the South African government’s priorities is to empower the country’s youth by encouraging them to utilise all opportunities presented to them to grow and create their own businesses, Minister in the Presidency, Mondli Gungubele, said on Thursday.
Gungubele said this to commemorate Youth Day – a day on which the country’s youth took on the apartheid government in street protests of educational inequality on 16 June 1976 in Soweto, a sprawling townships of Johannesburg.
“The youth are the future of this country and, therefore, government remains resolute in creating a favourable and supportive environment for youth to become successful entrepreneurs and leaders,” the minister said.
He added: “The youth of 2022 are called upon to help us build a better tomorrow for everyone.”
He said young people could become agents of change by embracing the opportunities provided to them and rising to the challenge of leading South Africa’s post-Covid-19 recovery.
According to the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS), government is creating favourable conditions for youth-owned businesses to thrive through Presidential youth employment intervention programmes like the Youth Employment Stimulus and the Social Employment Fund.
“The Youth Employment Stimulus ranges from formal education and training, learnerships and internships, as well as support for youth entrepreneurship,” the GCIS said on Thursday.
It added: “Since its launch in October 2020, the first two phases of the Presidential Employment Stimulus Programme have supported over 850,000 work opportunities – with 84% of the participants being young people.”
The latest programme to be launched through the employment stimulus is the Social Employment Fund, which has started to recruit 50,000 participants in community safety, food and nutrition, digital inclusion, and sports, arts and recreation, the agency said.
“A further 50,000 participants will be recruited for the revitalised National Youth Service,” the GCIS said in a statement.
NM/jn/APA