Organised Business at the Jobs Summit has committed to help dent the bloated unemployment rate.
Together with other top officials and business leaders have agreed on a package of measures that will create more than 200 000 additional jobs a year.
Social partners under National Economic Development and Labour Council will spend the next two days discussing how to grow the economy and create the much-needed job
The impact of joblessness across the country is disheartening. It is made worse by an economy heavily under pressure and in recession.
In the second quarter of 2018 unemployment worsened to 27.2%.
But it seems not all business is happy. The Black Business Council has hit out at the organisers saying they have turned away most of their members.
The council’s vice president Keith Thabo says organisers have turned away most of their members in favour of foreign business people. He says although they welcome efforts to address the country’s unemployment challenge, they are disappointed that they have been relegated to the back seat.
Economists have little faith in the outcome of the summit, saying the government should focus on the macroeconomic policies
The advisor to the President disagrees.
Meanwhile outside the summit, the unemployed protested saying those in attendance at the Summit do not represent their interests.
They demand a living wage and permanent jobs.
Measures announced include boosting local procurement, an export drive and financial sector investments in black-owned industrial enterprises. The summit continues on Friday.
The Chairperson of the National Youth Development Agency Sifiso Mtsweni has urged the private sector to play its part in the employment of young people.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has called the two day meeting to find innovative ways to create jobs.
Mtsweni says from the summit they expect nothing less from the summit but the prioritisation of the over 3,5 million unemployed young people.
