President Ramaphosa
By Thobeka Makume
Tomorrow, Tuesday 10 June 2025, President Cyril Ramaphosa will personally visit youth beneficiaries of the Presidential Youth Employment Intervention (PYEI) and Presidential Employment Stimulus (PES) programmes in Pretoria. The engagements will begin at Sefako Makgatho Primary School in Saulsville and continue at the South African Creative Industries Incubator (SACII) in Eersterust, before concluding at the Foundation for Professional Development (FPD) in Pretoria East .
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Driving Youth Employment and Skills Through Strategic Partnerships
The Presidency has highlighted that these site visits will showcase innovative public–private partnerships delivering dignified, quality employment and meaningful skills development for South Africa’s marginalised youth. President Ramaphosa will meet directly with young employees, their educators, and implementing partners, to witness firsthand how the PES and PYEI’s community-based, demand-led model is opening doors to job opportunities .
The visits reflect the government’s strong focus on youth empowerment during Youth Month, under the banner “Skills for the changing world, empowering youth for meaningful economic participation” . These programmes aim to counter soaring youth unemployment through structured interventions across sectors and regions.
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Visit 1: Sefako Makgatho Primary School – A Basic Education Employment Initiative
The visit will begin at Sefako Makgatho Primary School in Saulsville, where the Basic Education Employment Initiative (BEEI) under the PES is making a difference. This programme places youth as education and general school assistants in public schools, addressing both teacher shortages and unemployment. It is run in partnership with the Department of Basic Education (DBE) and the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) .
Over 200 000 young people have been placed in schools this week alone, contributing to improved educational support and gaining valuable workplace experience, Ramaphosa noted at a recent Black Business Council event .
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Visit 2: SACII – Nurturing Creative Tech Talent
Next, the President will visit the South African Creative Industries Incubator (SACII). This creative hub offers youth access to technical training, business incubation, production resources and networking within the arts and creative industries .
Funded through the National Pathway Management Network, a PYEI grant led by the Department of Employment and Labour and administered by the IDC, SACII is home to a first-of-its-kind Visual Special Effects (VFX) training initiative. The programme has attracted 100 trainees via the Innovation Fund and connects them to jobs within the creative gig economy .
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Visit 3: Foundation for Professional Development – Strengthening the Health Workforce
The visit will wrap up at the Foundation for Professional Development (FPD) in Pretoria East. FPD provides management and clinical skills courses to unemployed youth and healthcare workers. These affordable and accessible programmes are tailored to strengthen health sector capacity.
Supported by the Jobs Boost Outcomes Fund, this PYEI-driven intervention, led by the Department of Higher Education and Training and delivered through the National Skills Fund, ensures payments to providers are tightly linked to positive outcomes such as completion and job placement .
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Why These Visits Matter: Linking Policy to Real Impact
These site visits are not merely ceremonial—they serve as powerful proof points that strategic investment and cross-sector collaboration can transform young people’s lives and South Africa’s workforce. By aligning resources from education, labour, innovation, finance and training sectors, PES and PYEI are building a more inclusive economy that leaves no one behind.
This is especially critical as new industries emerge—green hydrogen, electric vehicles, health tech, digital media—requiring a diverse, skilled workforce. Government plans to invest over R1 trillion in public infrastructure over the next three years, and youth training programmes create the pipelines to fill those roles. At a recent address, President Ramaphosa noted these investments will not only restore economic growth but also reduce barriers for emerging and township-based businesses .
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Strengthening Social Compact and Private‑Public Collaboration
Public–private partnerships form the backbone of these initiatives:
• DBE and IDC support the BEEI in schools.
• Department of Employment and Labour and IDC enable SACII’s breakthroughs in creative sector VFX.
• DHET, National Skills Fund and Jobs Boost Outcomes Fund sustain vocational training through FPD.
These collaborations demonstrate how government departments, state funding bodies and private enterprises can pool capacity to elevate delivery and achieve scale. It also strengthens the social compact, embedding accountability, transparency and outcome orientation.
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Building Momentum in Youth Month
The programme tomorrow coincides with Youth Month—a time for reflection on the youth’s role in shaping South Africa’s future. This year’s theme, “Skills for the changing world, empowering youth for meaningful economic participation,” aligns seamlessly with the mission of PES and PYEI  .
Earlier this month, Ramaphosa addressed the Black Business Council, emphasising that economic empowerment must begin early—through quality education, youth employment and foundational support like nutrition, healthcare, and transportation . Today’s initiatives directly respond to that vision by equipping youth with meaningful roles and viable career pathways.
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Human Impact: Real Stories Behind the Numbers
While statistics make headlines, real change is reflected in personal journeys:
• Learners at Sefako Makgatho benefit from teacher assistants who contribute to improved learning environments.
• Trainees at SACII develop VFX skills, gain access to industry mentors, and build portfolios that may unlock global opportunities.
• FPD alumni, equipped with clinical and managerial skills, are ready to bolster South Africa’s health sector, especially in under-served communities.
These programmes also play an essential role in healing psychological trauma from unemployment. They imbue participants with hope, dignity, community standing, and the pride of purpose.
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Challenges and Ongoing Efforts
Despite successes, some barriers must be addressed:
• Funding limitations: IDC-backed programmes reach thousands, but scaling to millions will require deepened investment from development finance institutions and private financiers.
• Measurement clarity: Emphasis on outcome-based funding demands robust tracking of completion, employment and retention metrics.
• Geographic disparities: Rural youth and township residents are often still under-served; replicable models are needed for broader access.
President Ramaphosa’s site visits offer him a firsthand view of these dynamics, enabling key feedback loops and real-time adjustments to policy delivery.
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The Road Ahead: From Grassroots to National Gains
President Ramaphosa will likely leave tomorrow’s engagements with renewed dedication to:
• Scaling programmes that demonstrate clear impact.
• Increasing outcome-based funding to mobilise private resources and ensure accountability.
• Expanding public–private partnerships to reach more sectors and regions.
• Working across departments to improve the connectivity and accessibility of youth interventions.
• Showcasing these initiatives on an international stage—such as at the upcoming inaugural Africa Green Hydrogen Summit (12–13 June, Cape Town), the G7 Summit (14–17 June, Canada), and the Financing for Development Summit (30 June, Spain)—positioning South Africa’s youth interventions as models for global replication  .
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Conclusion: Empowering Youth, Building the Future
President Ramaphosa’s visits tomorrow carry deep symbolism and substance. By engaging directly with youth, schools, creative hubs and vocational training facilities, he showcases that real solutions lie in local, human-centred interventions.
Through PYEI and PES, government is weaving a national narrative of resilience, hope and empowerment. These programmes are not political gestures—they are catalysts for social renewal, economic revival, and intergenerational upliftment.
If the lessons learned in Pretoria this week can be scaled nationwide, the path ahead is clear: a more inclusive economy, a healthier society, and a future where every South African young person has the skills, opportunity, and dignity to thrive.
As Ramaphosa emphasised at the BBC Summit: “Transformation is vital if growth is to be meaningful, inclusive and sustainable” . Tomorrow, in Pretoria, that transformation will be visibly unfolding—one school, one incubator, one training centre at a time.
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