Source: President of South Africa –
Programme Director, Ms Noni Khumalo,
Deputy President of the Republic, Hon. Paul Mashatile
Executive Deputy Chair of the NYDA, Ms Karabo Mohale,
Honourable Minister Thembi Simelane
Our Statistician General, Mr Risenga Maluleka
Our various government officials from all departments and entities present
Mayor of Maluti, Councillor Malekula Julia Melato and her Executive
Speaker of Matlosana, Councillor Stella Mondlane- Ngwenya
Esteemed youth leaders, innovators, and partners from civil society, labour, academia, and the private sector,
Friends and colleagues
Good morning.
As we gather at this critical moment in Youth Month, we do so not only to commemorate the legacy of 1976, but also to recommit ourselves to the urgent task of realising the aspirations of today’s youth.
As the Deputy President so aptly said in his Youth Day address: “This generation demands more than promises; they deserve opportunity.”
Since this morning, we have engaged in powerful discussions from building smart cities to unlocking the potential of a youth-led economy, and the transformation of our industrial pathways through innovation and ethical leadership.
These insights reaffirm one truth: The hour of youth has struck.
The G20 circle of nations – who now include the African Union – has many examples to relate of the power of young people to transform society and the direction of the development of their nations.
This transformation is often the outcome of intense and sometimes tragic struggle and resistance because the incumbent generations find it hard to comply with that which does not serve our interests as young people and rightly so.
This Roundtable therefore my fellow compatriots is an opportunity for us to further shape our future but to however do so, through dialogue.
This consensus among generations is even more vital in a world faced with economic stagnation, inequality, climate shocks, and youth exclusion.
In keeping with our theme today, South Africa’s approach to solidarity is not rhetorical.
Instead, it is real, institutional, programmatic, and intergenerational.
We express it through Presidential Flagships that aim to realign our economy and state around inclusion, dignity, and opportunity.
One of the most transformative interventions in addressing youth unemployment is the Presidential Youth Employment Initiative.
The PYEI operates through various implementing departments, including Basic Education, Higher Education and Training, Trade, Industry and Competition, Employment and Labour as well as through partnerships with non-governmental organisations and the private sector.
As a coordinated government response, the PYEI has created over 1.7 million work and livelihood opportunities since its inception.
The initiative is supported through digital platforms such as SAYouth.mobi, which has registered over 4.7 million youth, connecting them to opportunities for learning, training, and employment.
In Q4 alone of the PYEI which we have just released earlier this month, 76,569 earning opportunities were accessed by young people, including:
• 60,444 opportunities through SA Youth, and
• 16,125 through the Employment Services of South Africa (ESSA).
We also saw continued progress through our partnerships:
• The Youth Employment Service (YES) facilitated 15,137 workplace experience placements in the private sector.
• Phase 3 of the Revitalised National Youth Service saw 2,048 youth recruited.
Let me also highlight the continued momentum of the Jobs Boost Outcomes Fund.
By the end of March 2025:
• Over 5,400 young people had been enrolled,
• More than 3,000 had been placed into quality jobs, and
• Over R70 million had been disbursed to 11 implementing partners, including R30 million in this quarter alone.
These jobs are not just temporary placements. They are quality jobs, defined by duration, income level, and growth potential. We are already seeing shifts in employer practices as a result.
Through the PYEI and Jobs Boost, we are not simply providing temporary work, we are laying the foundation for a generation of changemakers.
Our goal is to support young people to lead and innovate in critical sectors such as agriculture, entertainment, manufacturing, maritime and logistics, and mining.
These are industries that hold the potential to drive inclusive growth and global competitiveness. Whether it’s a young person mastering digital tools on a farm, producing content that redefines African storytelling, or training to revolutionise supply chains and mining practices, the PYEI is about more than numbers, it’s about nurturing purpose, potential and leadership.
With each opportunity created, we move closer to building a youth-powered economy that is ethical, skilled, and future-fit.
The National Youth Development Agency our hosts today continues to play a pivotal role in enabling youth to participate in the economy and society meaningfully.
Colleagues,
One of the three priorities for this 7th administration is inclusive growth and job creation. We must grow our economy in order for the multitudes of young people who are currently sitting at home with no hope of a better future to become economically active.
Reflecting government’s deep concern to resolve this pressure point, our Basic Education Employment Initiative is a fitting example.
In its fifth phase, this employment stimulus has created close to 200,000 opportunities for young people in more than 20,000 schools across the country.
In the basic education sector, these young people are not only helping in classrooms but are also gaining work experience, digital literacy, and employability skills as reading champions, ICT assistants and care agents.
In the post-schooling landscape, the Department of Higher Education and Training continues to expand access to universities, TVET colleges, and community education centres.
Beyond education, we are investing in youth enterprises.
Through the Department of Small Business Development, our National Youth Development Agency and the Industrial Development Corporation, we provide finance, mentorship, market access and incubation for youth-owned businesses.
Reforms to public procurement are opening value chains for township and rural youth entrepreneurs.
Together, these initiatives reflect a government that is deeply invested in the future of its young people, not just through rhetoric, but through tangible, impactful action.
In everyday life, these programmatic responses to the profound needs of young people and their families and communities, make the difference between survival and self-actualisation.
These programmes give people choices in what they eat, what they wear, how they support families; what they drive, what professions and industries they choose to exercise their talents and, yes, what music they download and the devices on which they do this.
It opens them up to the world and it opens up the world to what they are able to innovate and contribute.
This is the change we have created and witnessed during 31 years of freedom and democracy.
In the non-governmental sector, including the business sector, countless organisations are similarly committed to the empowerment of young people, even in circumstances where these efforts remain throttled by slow economic growth.
This social solidarity will be sustained and is a critical vehicle for lifting us out of the economic difficulties we face and for ensuring our growth efforts are inclusive and representative of all sectors of our society.
Spurring on our growth efforts is government’s Operation Vulindlela Phase II, a powerful engine for structural reform.
This initiative streamlines and accelerates cross-cutting economic and service delivery reforms. In Phase I, we unlocked renewable energy investment, opened up spectrum licensing, modernised ports, and improved water licensing.
Phase II now targets housing delivery near jobs, municipal service reform, and digital transformation including digital IDs and real-time payment systems. These reforms dismantle systemic barriers and help unlock youth participation in a dynamic economy.
From an emphasis on early childhood development, to initiatives such as the National Youth Service and the promotion of volunteering as part of building individual character and civic involvement, a new generation of differently empowered young people is emerging.
The needs, dreams and searches for opportunity among South Africa’s young people are needs, dreams and searches at play in every country in the world, including in the G20.
Indeed, particularly in the G20, given the large-scale and perilous migration of mainly young people from countries perceived as offering low opportunities, to countries viewed as places where dreams can come true.
In sending and receiving nations alike, solidarity must be our sustainable response.
It is the lens through which we must design policy, measure outcomes, and sustain hope.
Before I take my seat, I want us to remember that the most defining issue for our young people is unemployment. The latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey records a youth unemployment rate of 46%, yet there’s ongoing debate about how we measure this.
Recently, Capitec’s CEO suggested that the actual rate might be closer to 10%, pointing to vast informal economic activity that gets overlooked Stats SA’s Statistician General, who follows me, will clarify these figures, reminding us that while measurement merits scrutiny, we must leave the analysis and final deliberation to official experts.
This debate reminds us that stats shape policy, perceptions, and public trust. Whether the official unemployment rate of South Africa is 33% or lower, the reality is that young people are struggling, and government must respond decisively.
But we must do more, faster, and together.
Let every investment, every reform, every appointment be measured by one question: does it unlock opportunity for the next generation?
Let us move from vision to implementation. From talk to transformation.
Let us build a sustainable and secure future for all of us by making and keeping young people the priority of global society.
I am confident this Roundtable will keep us focused on this prize.
Thank you.
