Employment & Entrepreneurship
Each year, businesses are compelled to spend between a minimum of 1 % and 6 % of their payroll costs on Skills Development for maximum benefit in terms of Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment( B-BBEE), which spans the spectrum of tertiary and industry – or sector-specific – training. This has been in place for over two decades since the B-BBEE Act came into effect in 2003. With over twenty years of this level of investment, we should have an incredibly dynamic workforce.
According to the Progress in International Reading and Literacy Study( PIRLS) conducted in 2021and 2023, 8 out of 10 South African children struggle to read by age 10. For three consecutive years, South Africa has ranked last in the World Economic Forum ' s mathematics and science education quality rankings. This is a major inhibitor to any hope of improving unemployment. In the second quarter of 2024, Stats SA reported an official unemployment rate of 33.5 %, with an alarming 45.5 % unemployment rate among young individuals aged 15 – 34.
We are relatively consistent as the 60th most competitive global economy in 2024 against the IMD rankings … but we should remember that we still sit five places behind Botswana, which has a far less sophisticated economy.
We shouldn’ t dismiss the improvement in our global competitiveness, but a large part of this can be attributed to access to technology, financial services and telecommunications sectors that are competing in an increasingly global economy.
Policies like the B-BBEE Act – including the Skills Development pillar – and Employment Equity aim to address legacy inequalities, but businesses often approach them with a compliance mindset. Instead of leveraging them to build skills and foster innovation, many businesses see them as just another box to tick.
The world is changing, and South Africa’ s workforce risks being left behind. Technology, robotics and artificial intelligence( AI) are revolutionising industries, yet we are not equipping workers with the skills to thrive in this new landscape. Businesses frequently repeat the mantra:“ What if we train employees and they leave?” www. futuresa. co. za 101