Roodepoort, like the rest of the province and country, is hard hit by the unemployment situation in South Africa.
According to a report Stats SA released yesterday (29 July) the unemployment rate increased by 0,3 per cent between the first and second quarters of 2014 to reach 25,5 per cent, amounting to a staggering one in every four people.
On the same day the shocking statistics were made available, Freedom Front Plus (FF+) councillor Franco de Lange had the following solution tabled in the Johannesburg Metro meeting.
“The trend among the unemployed to wait for the private sector to create job opportunities contribute to South Africa’s poor economic growth,” says De Lange.
“There is a nationwide need for skilled artisans. The Metro owns property in various areas. These properties should be utilised as ‘one-stop shops’ where the unemployed can receive training and support that will benefit small and medium enterprises.
“The FF Plus proposes that all small and medium enterprises register at Sars and Cipro. The government also should provide basic technical and computer training to communities in Roodepoort (Johannesburg), while special attention should be given to the ins and outs of running a business,” De Lange continued.
“This will ensure that skilled workers enter the workforce, which would in turn provide a bigger tax base for the government.
“Entrepreneurs can go back to their communities and share their skills, resulting in the creation of job opportunities where it is needed most,” he concluded.
The unemployment rate increased was largest among the coloured and white populations, increasing by 1,8 per cent and 1,5 per cent respectively, according to the Stats SA report.
Currently in South Africa more than 15 million people receive welfare grants, which costs taxpayers more than R100 billion a year.
