The EYWA Project, a European initiative, is executed by four partners, CCI Spain as the Lead Applicant, in collaboration with JCCI, Lulalab Foundation and Youth Employment Service NPC (YES) in South Africa. These partners bring a wealth of expertise and experience in supporting underprivileged women and youth in Gauteng.

The EYWA project is dedicated to strengthening the capacity of national and local civil society organisations in South Africa, particularly those focused on women and youth, says JCCI.

The project's primary goals include:

• promoting gender equality
• facilitating the inclusion of young people in the labour market
• supporting entrepreneurship initiatives founded by women and young people, and
• building the capacity of women and youth networks to encourage their participation in policy dialogues.

JCCI adds that additionally, the project aims to strengthen public-private partnerships (PPPs) on socio-economic issues and support actions to prevent gender-based violence.

The conference discussions highlights the significant challenges faced by young people, with a particular emphasis on access to opportunities. A key challenge identified was the need for synergy between the public and private sectors to create systems that provide information about opportunities and accommodate youth who participate in various empowerment programmes but end up unemployed, says JCCI. 

According to JCCI, another major challenge is the lack of necessary skills among youth to secure workforce positions. The conference suggested a revision of the education system to equip young people with the skills required to enter the job market or create employment opportunities through entrepreneurship.

Another issue is that young people lack commitment to empowering themselves. It was mentioned that it has become a trend for young people to jump from one programme to another, treating learnerships, apprenticeships and internships as forms of employment rather than opportunities for skills development, says JCCI. 

This interferes with the success of such projects and raises questions about the opportunities provided and who exactly is gaining from them, adds JCCI. 

Youth were challenged to identify local problems in their communities and devise solutions to improve living conditions. In this way, they can improve the state of poverty locally and create functional economic hubs in townships. Innovation, partnered with empowerment opportunities, is a starting point for providing solutions to youth unemployment, concludes JCCI.

For more information, visit www.jcci.co.za. 

*Image courtesy of contributor