logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2024
11m 2s

Why can't young people in South Africa f...

Bbc World Service
About this episode

South Africa has the most industrialised and diverse economy in Africa. Yet it faces a major youth unemployment crisis with around four in ten young people jobless.

Young people are becoming disenchanted and disenfranchised, which could impact elections later this year. Polls show that the governing ANC party could lose its outright majority for the first time in three decades.

Siyabonga Ncala lives in Soweto and is currently hustling to find work. He talks us through some of the barriers he’s facing. Nobuhle Simelane, a BBC producer in Johannesburg, explains what the government is doing to help.

And we also hear from Ofentse Lekwane from the Harambee Youth Employment Accelerator. She explains what the future of work could be for young South Africans.

Email: whatintheworld@bbc.co.uk WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Alex Rhodes Producers: Mora Morrison, Kevyah Cardoso and William Lee Adams Editors: Verity Wilde and Simon Peeks

Up next
Aug 22
ID please! Why the UK is checking your age online
In the UK, if you want to watch pornography or see content on sites like X, Reddit and Discord that is deemed only suitable for people over 18 years old, you now need to provide your identification to prove you are old enough to access this material. The UK government says its On ... Show More
11m 33s
Aug 21
Why fake weddings are India’s latest party trend
The big fat 'fake' Indian wedding is social media’s latest party trend. Fake wedding parties have taken the world and social media by storm with people getting together to enjoy all the fun of a wedding party: the food, Bollywood music, dancing and glamorous outfits. But there ar ... Show More
10m 5s
Aug 20
Why the world is divided on plastic pollution
Life is full of plastic, but it’s not always fantastic. We know that plastic is super useful: it helps keep food fresh and lets medicines, like vaccines, be delivered at scale to billions of people. But the world is drowning in it. In fact, the amount of plastic on our planet now ... Show More
11 m
Recommended Episodes
Sep 2021
Why is unemployment so high in South Africa?
South Africa’s unemployment rate has hit a record high: it’s now 34.4%, which means about 7.8 million people are currently without a job. Young South Africans - especially young graduates - have been hit the hardest. So, how did things get so out of hand? And is the pandemic sole ... Show More
12m 13s
Jul 2021
Jobless, hungry, fed-up: Why South Africans rioted
As many as 75% of young South Africans are unemployed. In any other country that would be cause for a revolution according to one South African economist. Why did rioting and looting sweep the country last week? And could violence erupt again? This week The Take explores the vast ... Show More
20m 15s
Feb 2024
Could entrepreneurship be the remedy to high youth unemployment?
It’s a common story across the continent. A student graduates from university. They celebrate the end of their hard work with proud family members. But when they start job hunting they find they face fierce competition for a small number of jobs. The International Labour Organiza ... Show More
20m 6s
Jan 2021
How has the pandemic hit young people’s jobs?
Covid is costing many of us our jobs.An African Union report says as many as 20 million could go as a result of the pandemic.Even before all this began, youth unemployment across Africa was already twice as high as that among older adults.So when economies started slowing down, y ... Show More
15m 1s
Aug 2023
Why is South Africa collapsing?
South Africa once had the most abundant and cheap electricity on the continent. Now, it is experiencing power blackouts. It’s called loadshedding, the process by which the power company Eskom occasionally reduces the demand for electricity on the national grid.For many South Afri ... Show More
23m 45s
Jul 2022
Do young South Africans still believe in Nelson Mandela’s legacy?
Africa Daily is on the road in Africa… first stop: South Africa. And Alan has arrived just in time for Mandela day – a celebration of the former president’s birth. When Nelson Mandela became South Africa’s first democratically elected president in 1994, he was a hero in his own c ... Show More
19m 11s
Apr 2022
Can South Africa’s economy recover from Covid-19?
Many countries in Africa have ended restrictions and lockdown measures put in place during the height of the pandemic. In South Africa, which had the highest number of Covid-19 cases on the continent, this is a welcoming move for many industries; especially the hospitality sector ... Show More
13m 31s
Aug 2022
Why are Zimbabwean workers being forced to leave South Africa?
“The future now doesn’t look so bright for us.”Thousands of Zimbabweans – many who’ve lived in South Africa for the last decade – are facing mass deportation when the government ends a special permit scheme at the end of this year. Nearly 180,000 people are legally working or stu ... Show More
13m 52s
Jul 2023
Can Julius Malema’s EFF make socialism work in South Africa?
“All the pursuits of capitalism in Africa have dismally failed” Exactly ten years ago, firebrand South African politician Julius Malema and his allies, established the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF). It came after he was expelled from the ruling African National Congress (ANC) f ... Show More
19m 27s
Apr 2024
100 Influential Africans: What are the main challenges to doing business in Africa?
"It's hard to live in Africa. It's hard to pay your bills. Public transport is hard... And it's hard to run a business in Africa."Alan got a belated Christmas surprise this year – when he found out he’d been named as one of New African Magazine’s list of 100 most influential Afri ... Show More
23 m