President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced that today’s Youth Day celebrations in Pietermaritzburg in KwaZulu-Natal will go ahead but will be a hybrid event compliant with level three of the lockdown.
He announced that the country would enter level three with effect from midnight.
SA moves to lockdown level three:
The theme for Youth Day this year is “The year of Charlotte Maxeke: Growing youth employment for an inclusive and transformed society”.
President Ramaphosa says there will be a significantly reduced number of people attending the Pietermaritzburg event and he will give a virtual address.
Level three lockdown:
The litmus test for President Ramaphosa’s address to the nations will be what he has to offer the youth.
Already the President had said youth unemployment is government’s biggest concern.
Two weeks ago, Statistics SA released the national unemployment figures. It painted a dull picture with the official unemployment rate growing to a record high of 32,6 percent. The population group with the highest unemployment rate is the youth, with 63,3 percent of people between the ages of 15 and 24 being unemployed, and 41,3 percent for the age group 25 and 34.
COVID-19 regulations are to be enforced in Pietermaritzburg for the commemoration. The event is expected to have a limited number of guests and key stakeholders, mainly youth.
Meanwhile, DA Leader John Steenhuisen is expected to address the youth from Mitchells Plain on the Cape Flats during the Party’s Youth Day commemorations, encouraging young South Africans to turn up for their future.
However, the event will now have to comply with level three lockdown restrictions. Among the issues, Steenhuisen is expected to address is the youth unemployment rate.
