Employment and Labor Minister Nomakhosazana Methe has announced a R350m commitment towards a government and business partnership aimed at engaging 130,000 young people in learning and employment opportunities.
Delivering the Budget Vote 31 speech of the Department of Employment and Labor in Parliament on Tuesday, Meth said the intervention is part of the government's intensified efforts to tackle the country's worsening unemployment crisis.
“The latest Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) report reminds us of a reality that South Africa's economic recovery is not translating into jobs,” the minister said.
South Africa's official unemployment rate rose from 31.4% in the fourth quarter of 2025 to 32.7% in the first quarter of 2026, with more than eight million South Africans unemployed.
Meth said youth unemployment remains one of the country's biggest challenges.
“The crisis facing youth between the ages of 15 and 34 is that unemployment remains critically high at around 46%, underscoring the urgent need for accelerated economic growth, targeted labor market interventions and large-scale youth employment opportunities.”
The government has declared 2026 as “the Year of Putting Young South Africans to Work, in honor of the Youth of 1976 and to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of the Youth Uprising”.
“To deepen these interventions, R350m is committed to government and business partnerships, working closely with the Presidency and the National Pathway Management Network to engage 130,000 youth in learning opportunities, work exposure programs and employment interventions,” he said.
He said an additional R95m has been committed to the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) to support youth employment innovation projects aimed at engaging 7,000 youth in productive economic activities.
Labor activation program revamped
The Labor Activation Program is being reestablished to better respond to South Africa's unemployment crisis.
“The review of the Labor Activation Program strategy now focuses on three focused pillars, aimed at improving labor market absorption, strengthening the workplace experience and supporting enterprise-based job creation,” he said.
The first pillar will focus on demand-led skill development in line with scarce and critical skills required for the economy.
The second pillar will prioritize internships and work-integrated learning opportunities for graduates and TVET students.
“This will include work-integrated learning, placement of 20,000 Twit students in chartered financial analysts, chartered accountants, professional technicians and engineers, law students and health inspectors. Additionally, we will train 10,000 youth in digital skills and 10,000 for driver license (training),” the minister said.
The third pillar focuses on supporting micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) through blended finance mechanisms.
Government has set a target of 200,000 jobs
Meth said the government plans to recruit 200,000 unemployed people through targeted labor market interventions during the current fiscal year.
“Importantly, 70% of all opportunities will be directed to youth, which reflects a deliberate commitment to address the plight of unemployed youth,” he said.
Over the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) period, the government aims to support a total of 605,000 beneficiaries.
The minister also revealed that R36.6bn has been set aside on the MTEF for the Labor Activation Programme.
“For the 2026/27 financial year, the Department of Employment and Labor has been allocated R4.578bn, which represents an increase of 10.2% from the previous financial year,” the minister said.
Meth called on employers to partner with the government in creating opportunities for young South Africans.
“We call on all employers to partner with us and open up opportunities to employ young South Africans either to complete their studies or to gain first-time work experience through internships,” he said.