The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) honours the youth of 1976 for the role they played in confronting the brutal apartheid regime and ultimately bringing about a democratic South Africa. COSATU also acknowledges that today’s youth faces markedly different challenges.
The appallingly high unemployment rate is a major challenge. South Africa’s overall unemployment rate stands at 43.1%, but for young people between the ages of 15 and 24, the rate is more than 72%. As if that isn’t bad enough, the number of young people in this age group not in education or employment has increased by nearly 2% to 3,8 million when compared to the first quarter of 2024.
Looking at these figures it is clear young people are under siege. Nothing, however, demonstrates the devastation and frustration South Africans are feeling more blatantly than news that some community members in the Chris Hani District, Eastern Cape have drawn up a petition protesting job postings that call for applicants between the ages of 18 and 35. According to the drafters and signatories of the petition, the age range should be widened to include applicants aged between 18 to 59 years. Such is the devastating impact of unemployment, poverty and inequality that parents are forced to compete for the same opportunities as their children.
According to Statistics SA, graduate unemployment in Quarter 1 of this year increased to 11.7% from 8.7% compared to the same period last year. Even though graduate unemployment has increased, Statistics SA has found that those with a tertiary education fare better in the labour market than those with a matric or less education.
Similarly, those with a matric are more likely to find a job than those without. This underpins the critical role played by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) in helping young South Africans pay for their tertiary education. This why it is crucial for NSFAS to adopt a frugal mindset and not spend millions on parking bays and swanky office space.
Statistics SA figures also reveal that young people with vocational and technical training also fare better in the job market than their contemporaries with matric level or less education, though not as well as university graduates. This underlines the importance of TVET colleges in the country’s education landscape. Equally vital are the 21 Sector Education and Training Authority (SETA)s whose mandate is to facilitate skills development within specific economic sectors. It is for this reason that there was such an outcry when the Minister of Higher Education, Dr. Nobuhle Nkabane, appointed seemingly politically connected individuals as chairpersons of these SETAs.
COSATU commends various government initiatives to help address the plight of the youth from the R50 billion allocated to NSFAS annually to free basic education and school meals for millions of learners and the soon to be enrolled 700 000 Grade R learners as well as the teaching assistants stating work but given the levels of our challenges much more must be done urgently.
COSATU calls on those responsible for these all-important entities, to do right by them to ensure they deliver mandated services to the youth of this country, because they are the future and deserve nothing less than the best opportunities we can offer.
Issued by COSATU
Zanele Sabela (COSATU National Spokesperson)
Mobile: 079 287 5788 / 077 600 6639
Email: zaneles@cosatu.org.za