‘More employment hubs needed in Soweto, not Sandton’: Delivery Ka Speed founder on entrepreneurship

The Momentum Group Foundation held their Masibambisane – Thriving Together event, where leaders from the public and private sectors, together with youth entrepreneurs met to discuss ways to create more employment opportunities for South Africans.

27-year-old Godiragetse Mogajane, founder of Delivery Ka Speed recently took it to the stage in Houghton, Gauteng, to air out his views on what stakeholders can do to help with the high rate of unemployment.

He believes it is important to create employment opportunities directly in the communities where the youth live, as this will have an immediate impact.

“We need to create employment hubs in places like Soweto and Hammanskraal instead of focusing on urban centres like Sandton. By bringing opportunities to our youth, we empower them to be mobile, access credit, and see their dreams realised,” said Mogajane.

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Collaboration efforts for employment opportunities

Dumo Mbethe, executive director of Momentum Group said no entity can singlehandedly solve the high rate of unemployment. To successfully create employment, there needs to be partnerships between corporations, government, and civil society.

“By working together, we can make a lasting impact. Without this level of collaboration, any effort to address youth unemployment will fall short of making a meaningful contribution.”

He added that stakeholders aim to create sustainable employment and entrepreneurial opportunities by empowering young people in townships and rural areas, as the impact of unemployment is most severe.

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Youth employment strategy

“Since the adoption of the youth employment strategy in 2019, the foundation has reached over 50,637 youth, trained more than 2,200 individuals, placed 1,456 into jobs, and supported 84 entrepreneurs,” he said.

Since 2019, the foundation has given people new skills, and a way to find employment, and helped entrepreneurs start their own businesses through the foundation’s Consumer Financial Education (CFE) programmes and socio-economic development.

“While we are proud of these achievements, we are aware of the pressing need to expand our efforts. We can explore innovative solutions and drive systemic change in addressing South Africa’s youth unemployment crisis and, give back to the youth, the power of their own unique dream.”

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Government’s effort

Present at the event was the Deputy Minister of Employment and Labour, Jomo Sibiya, who supported the call for collaboration.

“South Africa’s alarmingly high youth unemployment rate clearly demonstrates that we are in a national crisis. Proper coordination across key stakeholders is essential for my department and for the country. But government alone cannot solve this crisis. We need to be intentional about building a culture of entrepreneurship and working together with the private sector to empower our youth.”

He emphasised the need to focus on the informal sector and small businesses, as empowering young entrepreneurs would have a ripple effect on the broader economy.

“If the informal sector grows, the economy will grow in parallel. We are committed to ensuring that townships and rural areas, where our young people are most affected, receive the support they need. We will continue working with the private sector to remove barriers like red tape and improve access to funding.”

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Unemployment in the country

Unemployment in the country sits at 33.5%. In the second quarter of 2024, statistics South Africa said there was a decrease of 92,000 employed people and an increase of 158,000 in the number of unemployed people.

“The number of people who were not economically active for reasons other than discouragement decreased by 75 000 (down by 0.6%) between the two quarters, resulting in an increase of 72 000 in the number of not economically active people to 16,3 million.”

Most unemployment in the country is found among women. The reason for this is partly because women are more likely to take on household duties, child-rearing and other responsibilities that limit their opportunities in the labour market.

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