ANCYL president Collen Malatji says youth unemployment remains the “greatest crisis confronting this generation”, calling for urgent intervention and stronger job creation targets across government and private sector.
Image: ANCYL/ Facebook
The ANC Youth League (ANCYL) says President Cyril Ramaphosa will not be allowed to address young people at the upcoming June 16 commemorations in Gauteng until unemployed youth attending the event have submitted their CVs as part of a campaign aimed at tackling youth unemployment.
Speaking during a media briefing on Tuesday, ANC Youth League president Collen Malatji described youth unemployment as “the greatest crisis confronting this generation”, saying millions of young people remained excluded from meaningful economic participation.
He said poverty, inequality, crime, substance abuse, and hopelessness continued to rise in communities across the country as many graduates struggled to find work despite having qualifications.
Referring to the June 16 commemorations marking 50 years since the 1976 student uprising, Malatji said the Youth League wanted the event to become “more than just a symbolic event”.
“Young people attending the programme will be encouraged to submit their CVs as part of the Programme Youth Job Campaign aimed at connecting youth unemployment,” he said.
“The President of the country will not be allowed to address before he receives all the CVs from all the unemployed youth.”
Malatji said thousands of young people were leaving schools, colleges and universities every year only to find that there were no opportunities available to them.
“The ANCYL therefore calls for an urgent and decisive intervention aimed at placing youth employment at the centre of government and private sector priorities,” he said.
He said both government and the private sector needed to adopt measurable youth employment targets, particularly in sectors receiving public funding and support.
The Youth League also accused some companies of treating the unemployment crisis with indifference while prioritising profits over creating opportunities for young people.
Malatji said companies needed to be held accountable through enforceable employment targets, internships, workplace training programmes and graduate opportunities for young South Africans.
The ANCYL further called for accelerated industrialisation, localisation and procurement policies that prioritise local manufacturing, township economies and youth-owned businesses.
“Young people cannot continue to be spectators in their own economy and country,” Malatji said.
He also called for expanded support for youth entrepreneurship through improved access to funding, mentorship, procurement opportunities and business development support.
Malatji said institutions such as the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) should be properly resourced to strengthen youth-owned enterprises, skills development programmes, business funding and graduate placement initiatives.
“Young people need decent jobs, opportunities, workplace exposure and support for entrepreneurship,” he said.
He added that the future stability and growth of the South African economy depended on young people being included in productive economic activity.
The Youth League also raised concerns about illegal immigration and its impact on employment opportunities, labour conditions and already strained public resources.
“While South Africa remains committed to a progressive African unity, illegal migration cannot be allowed to worsen unemployment and economic exclusion of young South Africans,” Malatji said.
He said the exploitation of undocumented foreign nationals as cheap labour by some employers, together with the lowering of labour standards, had worsened unemployment among young South Africans.
The ANCYL called on the Minister of Employment and Labour to conduct workplace inspections throughout Youth Month, particularly in restaurants, construction sites, retail stores, factories and other sectors where labour migration laws were allegedly being undermined.
“Employers exploiting undocumented foreign nationals in violation of labour laws must face decisive consequences,” Malatji said.
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