Picture: The ANC Chief Whip in North West Provincial Legislature, Motlalepula Rosho/Supplied
By OBAKENG MAJE
6 March 2025- The African National Congress (ANC) Chief Whip in the North West Provincial Legislature, Motlalepula Rosho on Tuesday urged the provincial government not to spare any effort to defuse the ticking time bomb of youth unemployment. Rosho called for rigorous economic transformation programmes that will revitalise industrial sites to be implemented in order to address unemployment among youth that is standing at 52.4%, the highest in the country, during the State of the Province Address (SOPA) debate in the provincial legislature.
She further said these sites possess the efficient ability to accelerate the creation of an enabling environment for investment in improved manufacturing competitiveness, which remains the most reliable sustained employment creator with the highest jobs
multiplier. Rosho added that, the State-owned Enterprises (SoEs) must be repositioned to contribute towards job creation as part of the Provincial Growth and Development Strategy that focuses on mining, agriculture and tourism to stimulate economic growth and development.
“The turnaround strategy of SoEs must realise return on investment for an inclusive economy that benefits everyone particularly women, youth and people with disabilities.
“The North West Development Cooperation (NWDC) must fully exploit job creation opportunities across the province as part of full realisation of its mandate with manufacturing as a priority sector,” she said.
Rosho also expressed concern regarding the delayed establishment of the Bojanala Special Economic Zone, which has the potential to create 15 000 job opportunities for the unemployed in the Moses Kotane Local Municipalities and surrounding areas. She assured the people of the North West that the government’s programme of action announced last Thursday by the North West Premier, Lazarus Mokgosi in his SOPA, will be closely monitored on how many jobs it will create.
“The POA’s priority must be more jobs and nothing less but more jobs. We do not have the luxury not to deliver on this priority.
“The ANC-led government must through the critical interventions create new and sustainable jobs, by continuing the engagement with the private sector on job creation, to contribute to the provincial efforts to reduce and create employment opportunities for communities,” said Rosho.
She said engagement with the agricultural sector, mines, private business and all stakeholders must be pursued to create conditions that will enable small businesses to emerge, grow, access new markets as well as create new products and more sustainable employment opportunities for young people. Rosho said beneficiation of the mineral resources will reverse decades of an extraction economy that has not contributed much to creating local jobs to address the triple challenges of poverty, unemployment and equality.
“We welcome the opening of a newly refurbished Gold Processing Plant at Orkney, which forms part of the R9 billion investment by China Africa Precious Metals aimed at creating and preserving 10 000 jobs.
“The support provided to youth owned enterprises, with financial and non-financial business development interventions through the National Youth Development Agency Grant Programme, should be buttressed with expansion and allocation of more funds to capacitate SMME’s,” she underscored.
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