South Africa's youth crisis: 3.4 million young people not in employment, education, or training
via The Citizen2 min read
Higher Education and Training Minister Buti Manamela highlighted South Africa's deepening youth crisis, revealing that 3.4 million young people are neither employed nor engaged in education or training. Speaking at the Inside Education Summit, Manamela described this figure as a "lived reality" reflecting a failing system. He emphasized that the challenge extends beyond unemployment, calling it a "crisis of pathways" where the education system struggles to transition young people from learning to earning. The minister noted that the system is "leaking" at critical points, from early childhood development to labor market entry. Manamela pointed out that despite increased investment in early childhood development, only 42% of children are developmentally on track by age five, indicating that inequality is produced early in life. He advocated for a shift from producing job-seekers to job creators, mentioning that all 50 public TVET colleges now offer entrepreneurship programs, with over 47,000 students participating in 2024. However, he cautioned that entrepreneurship needs a structurally open economy to thrive. Manamela also addressed the shortage of skilled artisans, with only about 20,000 produced annually against a demand for 30,000. The government aims to increase artisan training registrations to 37,000 this year. He stressed that fragmentation across the education and training system is a major obstacle, calling for stronger coordination among government, industry, and ci
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