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Youth fund gets R1bn
Feb 14 2009 05:05:42:080PM
After securing additional funding from the
government, Umsobomvu
Youth Fund chief executive Malose Kekana will now wait and see what
the future holds for him and his staff members. Mpho Sibanyoni
AFTER securing additional funding from the government, Umsobomvu Youth
Fund chief executive Malose Kekana will now wait and see what the future
holds for him and his staff members. This week Finance Minister Trevor
Manuel announced that UYF would receive R1 billion. This was a welcome
boost compared to the R500 million the soon-to-be-dissolved youth body
received last year. The UYF is going to be merged with the
policy-formulating National Youth Commission in June to form the National
Youth Development Agency (NYDA). A part of the allocation is expected to
be deposited into the NYDA’s bank account. Not everyone is
impressed by the UYF.
Young Communist League president Castro Ngobese accused the fund of
failing the youth. “About 47% of the youth are now unemployed and
we hope that those who will be entrusted with that money are going to be
responsible enough to use it in a way that benefits the youth.”
Nafcoc Youth president Phosane Mngqibisa said: “We welcome the R1
billion allocation, provided it is going to assist the youth to open their
own small businesses. “Many young people have been complaining
that UYF is not accessible and we hope this will change with the formation
of NYDA,” he says. President of the mainly Afrikaans
organisation, AfriForum Youth, Ernst Roes says the government must try to
find a way for the money to also benefit poor white youth.
“We’re glad the government appreciates the importance of youth
development but we think the money should be also be channelled to
organisations that will ensure that the young people from other races are
also empowered.” Kekana says since the UYF started the only
problem he had was the “small amount of money” that it was
allocated by the government. “And I doubt this new youth
organisation can be successful if the government doesn’t allocate
enough funds,” he said. “The challenge for the government
is to support the vision of the NYDA with enough resources, or else the
status quo will remain.” Last year Kekana controversially
announced that UYF, which only funds black youth and women, was looking
for ways to also accommodate white youth. Critics argued that it would be
difficult to measure if a white person was poor. On Thursday, Kekana
stuck to his view. “I personally feel poor white youth should also
get access to funding,” he said. “I think there are many
ways to check if a person is poor. We can check the education level and
trace that person’s household income at the SA Revenue Service or
the credit bureaus,” he argues. Kekana remarks that the mood in
the UYF has been a bit tense for the past several months as staff members
are uncertain about their future. “The mood is okay but I cannot
say it is similar to what it was three years ago,” he says. For
now Kekana will stay in his position.
“I just want to make sure that there is a smooth transition and that
my workers are well-taken care of when the NYDA is formed,” he said.
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