By Charmaine Ndlela
The Presidential Youth Employment Intervention (PYEI) recorded 155,166 new earning opportunities during the fourth quarter of the 2025/26 financial year, from January to March this year, bringing the total number of opportunities accessed through the initiative to more than 2.9 million since its launch in 2020.
Deputy Minister in the Presidency Nonceba Mhlauli said the latest results demonstrate steady progress in tackling youth unemployment through coordinated partnerships between government, the private sector and civil society.
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More than 5.9 million young people have registered on the SA Youth platform since the programme’s inception, while 5.36 million are registered on the government’s Employment Services of South Africa (ESSA) database. The PYEI is an overarching inititaive With a number of programmes. The largest of these is the Basic Education Employment Initiative (BEEI) which hires teacjer assistants for public shools among others.
To date, SA Youth has facilitated more than 2.5 million earning opportunities, with a further 422,667 opportunities accessed through ESSA.
Mhlauli said the intervention continues to address inequalities in the labour market, with more than 70% of opportunities benefiting young women.
“PYEI continues to demonstrate its commitment to contributing to closing gaps in the labour market for young people,” she said.
The intervention’s demand-led skilling programme also recorded strong growth during the quarter. Through the Youth Employment Service (YES), 18,310 young people secured workplace experience opportunities, while the Department of Higher Education and Training, through Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs), placed a further 5,005 TVET students and graduates in work-integrated learning opportunities.
The quarter’s total of 23,315 workplace experience placements was more than double that achieved during the previous quarter, bringing the cumulative total to 228,148 placements.
Enterprise development also expanded, with the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) providing 6,085 enterprise support opportunities during the quarter, including 5,553 non-financial and 532 financial support interventions.
Mhlauli said the Revitalised National Youth Service (NYS) continues to create paid service opportunities for young people while equipping them with valuable skills.
She announced that Phase 5 of the programme will recruit an additional 100,000 young people across South Africa.
“This will result in a significant increase in the number of young people accessing NYS opportunities,” she said.
The Deputy Minister also highlighted the performance of the Jobs Boost Outcomes Fund, South Africa’s first large-scale outcomes-based employment fund.
The R300 million pilot programme, which concluded implementation in March 2026, exceeded several of its targets. By 30 March 2026, 9,260 young people had enrolled, while 7,044 participants had secured jobs, surpassing the placement target by more than 50%.
The programme also verified 5,211 participants who remained employed for at least three months, with 3,795 sustaining employment for six months.
Mhlauli said the results demonstrate the effectiveness of outcomes-based funding in creating sustainable employment opportunities for young people.
“The results of the financial year demonstrate what coordinated, demand-led action can deliver for young people in South Africa,” Mhlauli said.
“Heading into the 2026/27 financial year, our focus remain on scaling the delivery of quality work placements, advancing the mainstream of outcomes-based financial in public service delivery, and contributing to centre the ambition of South Africa’s young people across every part of the intervention.”
Launched by President Cyril Ramaphosa in 2020, the Presidential Youth Employment Intervention was established as to help young people transition from learning to earning through skills development, workplace experience, entrepreneurship support and employment opportunities.
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