“It always seems impossible until it is done” – Nelson Mandela

As one of the most unequal societies in the world, South Africa’s youth are victims of structural inequality and poverty, a legacy of apartheid’s sweeping injustice and brutality.

While previous generations rose up successively to end political oppression and racial injustice, today’s generation of youth face an equally daunting and devastating foe: the scourge of poverty, unemployment and inequality. The former Statistician General, Pali Lehohla, commenting on the latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey, compared the situation in our country as similar to a cat eating its own kittens.

Not only do the youth face these triple challenges, and the related obstacles associated with spatial apartheid and the digital divide, they also have to overcome barriers in education.

While so many interventions, policies and institutions are focused on arresting this alarming situation, Kagiso Trust invites you to a Roundtable with key stakeholders to unpack the cause of our youth unemployment challenge, the options and interventions to address these and opportunity to navigate a path for our nation’s youth.