The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng is deeply concerned that the Department of Economic Development in the province is using the Covid-19 pandemic as one the reasons why it did not meet its target set for the Youth Accelerator Programme.
This information was revealed to me by the MEC for Economic Development, Winifred Mosupyoe to my written questions tabled in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature.
In the department’s fourth quarter report for the 2019/2020 financial year it was revealed that the target set for this programme which is administered by the Gauteng Enterprise Propeller (GEP) was only partially met.
For the previous financial year, the department had a target of training 450 youth as part of the Youth Accelerator Programme, but the department only managed to train 239 youth.
This trend of not meeting critical training targets is becoming a norm for GEP.
Training programmes like the Youth Accelerator Programme is important as it will equip our youth with skills needed to find sustainable job opportunities or to become entrepreneurs.
The constant underperformance of this entity has a negative impact on the fulfilment of its core mandate which is to promote, foster and develop small enterprises in the province.
Entities like GEP play an important role in boosting the economy and helping particularly the youth to establish their own businesses, which in turn allows them to create job opportunities in their own communities.
The DA will be closely monitoring the measures put in place by GEP to ensure that they meet the targets set for the Youth Accelerator Programme for this financial year.