MPUMALANGA – Acting Premier of Mpumalanga, Speed Mashilo, has called for urgent and coordinated action to tackle youth unemployment, poverty, and inequality. He delivered the keynote address during the provincial Youth Day commemoration held on Monday, June 16, 2025, at Mangweni Stadium under the Nkomazi Local Municipality.
Delivering the speech on behalf of Premier Mandla Ndlovu, who is currently leading a trade delegation in China, Mashilo warned that the province could no longer treat the exclusion of young people as business as usual.
“This cannot be business as usual when our youth are still roaming our streets unemployed,” said Mashilo. “It has to be business unusual.”
This year’s Youth Day was observed under the theme “Skills for a Changing World – Empowering Youth for Meaningful Economic Participation”, and it highlighted the provincial government’s commitment to equipping young people for a rapidly evolving global economy.
Mashilo outlined several key interventions: the fast-tracked transfer of Elijah Mango College to Ehlanzeni TVET College to improve vocational training; the continued rollout of the Premier Youth Development Fund (PYDF), which now covers all 17 local municipalities; and Mpumalanga’s unique position as the only province in South Africa with fully fledged NYDA offices in every district.
He also noted that National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) services had been digitised, enabling young people to apply for opportunities and track their applications online, without needing to visit physical offices.
Despite this progress, Mashilo acknowledged the enduring challenges faced by young people, almost five decades after the historic 1976 Soweto Uprising.
“We are meeting 49 years after 1976 and 31 years into democracy, yet many youth still live in poverty, without work or prospects,” he said. “We must ask ourselves: what will future generations remember us for?”
He emphasised that the Medium Term Development Plan (2024–2029) places inclusive growth, job creation, and education reform at the core of the seventh administration’s agenda. However, he warned that unless youth are deliberately included in these initiatives, they would remain just “a dream on paper”.
Mashilo also took a firm stance on gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF), describing it as a national emergency. He urged communities to speak out and confront perpetrators, often hiding in plain sight.
“The people behind GBVF are our neighbours, brothers, and relatives. Enough is enough,” he declared.
He encouraged young people to resist hopelessness and take active roles in reversing social ills such as crime, substance abuse, and disengagement from civic life.
“We cannot rest, nor spare ourselves,” Mashilo concluded. “Let this day remind us of the courage shown in 1976, and demand that we confront today’s challenges with the same resolve.”
