The latest unemployment numbers in South Africa paint a bleak picture for young people, with 72.7% of youth aged 15-24 without work under the expanded definition of unemployment. This translates to 10.37 million young individuals facing significant challenges in securing employment. According to Statistics South Africa, job opportunities for this age group decreased by 160,000 compared to the previous year. The situation is further complicated by rising vulnerability among qualified cohorts, with graduate unemployment increasing by 1.4 percentage points and other tertiary unemployment jumping by 4 percentage points.
The One Young World Summit in Cape Town brought together young leaders from around the world to discuss solutions to the joblessness crisis. Tom Osborn, a One Young World ambassador and founder of Kenyan solutions startup Shamiri, emphasized the need to redefine innovation and challenge the traditional promise of social mobility via formal degrees. He argued that the current education system has failed to provide a reliable path to employment, leading to intense stress and disillusionment among young people. Osborn advocates for a new blueprint for livelihoods outside of formal Western-derived education.
Osborn also highlighted the importance of mental health in addressing the livelihood issue. He explained that the traditional promise of social mobility via formal degrees has collapsed across Africa, generating intense stress and disillusionment. Osborn proposed three pathways to solve the crisis: a new blueprint for livelihoods, a focus on local entrepreneurial solutions, and a shift away from Western-style venture capital. He emphasized that young people are solving problems in their local communities, and that this approach should be supported.
David Jones, co-founder of One Young World, echoed Osborn's sentiments, emphasizing that young people possess unprecedented leverage through digital and social capabilities. He believes that they are the most powerful generation of young adults, with a fresher perspective and the ability to drive change using digital and social tools. However, Jones warned that global rhetoric must translate into tangible execution and purpose-driven enterprise. He emphasized that business, governments, and charities must work together to address the crisis.
Prof Thuli Madonsela reflected on the leadership failures that have contributed to the crises affecting young South Africans. She distinguished between leadership and positional leadership, emphasizing that each individual has a role to play in creating a positive impact. Madonsela believes that South Africa will be fixed when communities are re-engineered to be co-creators of the future they want to be part of. She lamented that young people have been turned into consumers, rather than being empowered to co-create their own future.
Alistair Kennedy, head of youth development at Standard Bank, refuted the trope of youth entitlement being a root cause of joblessness. He argued that young South African candidates exhibit extraordinary resilience and outlined how corporate talent acquisition must move beyond marks to holistic problem-solving in the era of AI. Kennedy praised the level of humanity and empathy in the current youth cohort and emphasized that the challenge is not skills, but rather workplace readiness.
The One Young World summit demonstrated that the current young generation is moving forward without the need for permission. The gathering of young leaders and entrepreneurs showcased innovative solutions to the joblessness crisis, with a focus on local entrepreneurial approaches and digital and social capabilities. As the crisis continues to affect young people in South Africa, it is clear that a new approach is needed, one that prioritizes community-led solutions and empowers young people to co-create their own future.
Key points
- Redefining innovation and challenging traditional education systems is crucial to addressing youth unemployment.
- Young people possess unprecedented leverage through digital and social capabilities, but global rhetoric must translate into tangible execution.
- Community-led solutions and empowering young people to co-create their own future are essential to addressing the joblessness crisis.
