THE METRO FM YOUTH ROUNDTABLE 

Youth Unemployment and the solutions we need

Today President Cyril Ramaphosa outlined a number of interventions government plans to use to address  youth unemployment rate. He addressed, virtually, the national Youth Day. He said government would place the youth at the centre of its national recovery plan. 

Data published by Statistics South Africa at the start of June shows that the official unem-ployment rate among youth (15-34 years) was 46.3% in Q1 2021. The data shows that of the 7.2 million unemployed persons in the first quarter of 2021, more than half (52.4%) had education levels below matric, followed by those with matric at 37.7%.

Separate data published by labour minister Thulas Nxesi shows that approximately 1.3 million people aged 15-24 sit without work in South Africa for at least three months, while the vast majority of these people (over 1 million) are stuck without work for a minimum of 12 months.

To chat more on this and the intervention needed: 

Wandile Ngcaweni  Researcher at the Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection and co-editor: We are No Longer at Ease

Princess Majola  Gauteng Coordinator - #PaytheGrants Campaign 

And 

Siyasanga Ndwayi  Organiser: Youth Unemployment Crisis Comment 

And later (to comment: 20h30) 

Skhumbuzo Soxujwa Chairperson - Unemployed People's Movement (UPM)