MBOMBELA – The provincial government has set aside R103 million for the Premier’s Youth Development Fund.
This was announced today by Premier, Mandla Ndlovu during the tabling of his Policy and Budget speech where he outlined plans for the 2025/26 financial year.
Ndlovu said this as part of commitment towards youth development, a Provincial Youth Development Strategy will be developed to strengthen planning and implementation of youth targeted programs in the province.
“We have seen and recorded the growth and sustainability of youth enterprises contributing to our provincial economic growth and economic development through realization of job opportunities created.
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“The office has set a target that 30% of our procurement must be from youth owned companies in the 2025/26 financial year,” said the premier.
He added that since its inception, the Premier Youth Development Fund, through the youth enterprises, has created more than 800 jobs.
“These jobs were created in various economic sectors such as manufacturing, mining, green economy, tourism, agriculture, amongst others. In the 2024/25 financial year, a total of 66 youth enterprises benefited from the fund, and an amount of R90.7 million was approved for disbursement,” he said.
