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The Minister of Social Development,
The MEC for Economic Development & Tourism,
MPs and MPLs,
The organisers, Ms Dudu Myeni & Ms Dawn Marolo,
The participants and other youth present,
Ladies and gentlemen.

It is indeed a pleasure to be with you today with the launch of the Youth Enterprise Development Project (YEDP). This is a very important initiative for the youth in the Empangeni/Richards Bay area in the Northern Zululand region of KwaZulu-Natal. It is also important for the province as a whole. I also believe it will make the necessary impact in the country.

As government, we certainly are most appreciative of these initiatives that seek to uplift youth through enterprise endeavours in this instance and to create opportunities for them to improve the quality of their lives. This is indeed commendable.

It is extremely important to focus on the youth, as they are the future of our country. It is important that they have the required expertise and skills to make the necessary and constructive contribution to our country.

Just two days ago, government released findings on the "Youth of South Africa" that was conducted by Statistics South Africa based on the data of the census of 1996:

* Of the 40.6 million people living in the country in October 1996, just over 16.1 million or 40% were youth, i.e. people in the age bracket 14 to 35.

* South Africa's population is thus relatively youthful, a feature of the population of many developing countries;

* About 21% of all youth in South Africa live in KwaZulu-Natal, followed by Gauteng (20%) and Eastern Cape (14%). This therefore means that unemployment is more acute in the province of KwaZulu-Natal.

* The overall unemployment rate according to the expanded definition for youth in South Africa according to Census 96 was 40.9%;

* The unemployment rate in KwaZulu-Natal was 47.1%;

* The unemployment rate for economically active youth was higher for females (49.6%) than for males (33%);

* The problem of lack of jobs is more intense in non-urban areas where the unemployment rate was at 51.3% compared to 35.7% in urban areas;

* The unemployment rates for male youth and female youth without any formal education was 33.8% and 52.3% respectively;

* More than two in every five employed male African youth (45%) worked as artisans and operators, while about half (49.7%) of employed female African youth held elementary jobs; and

* Fifty-five percent of employed male African youth and 70.6% of employed female African youth earned R1 000 and less per month in 1996.

Given the above scenario, prospects for a quality life, particularly in relation to job opportunities and general living standards, remains a major concern in respect of a large proportion of youth in South Africa, given their predominantly low level of education.

These figures graphically illustrate the status of youth and the challenges they face within society. People in this area, including the youth, also face the challenge of high levels of poverty and predominantly lower educational qualifications.

Those with lower educational qualifications generally have a lesser chance of getting a job and the jobs they get are at the lower end of the market.

Over and above the youth getting higher and better educational qualifications, the issue of entrepreneurship training and mentoring is critical for imparting skills and the necessary business and technical know how. Once these skills are acquired, these new entrepreneurs out there can make a difference to the lives of others.

According to the Entrepreneurship Monitor conducted by the School for Entrepreneurship at the UCT Graduate School of Business comprising 29 countries, South Africa was ranked 14th. We scored 9.5% compared to Mexico at 19% by way of comparison with another developing country. This rate is low by international norms. Most of these entrepreneurs operate in the informal sector, and 41 percent of them are women.

Once the recipients establish their own small enterprises it will only serve to improve the situation where they are located. You may be aware that small enterprises are really the engine of economic development.

According to the year 2000 Annual Review by Ntsika, the small business agency, SMMEs contribute about 40 percent to South Africa's Gross Domestic Product, and their contribution to overall employment in the formal and informal sectors is well above 60 percent.

The above indicates that much more needs to be done to foster a more entrepreneurial spirit in South Africa; because without the creative and innovative human touch our sound macro-economic fundamentals will not ensure us the levels of growth we require to create more jobs and continue to create a better life for all.

We are aware that barriers for entry into new businesses are still high. I'm sure here many of you will agree with me that access to finance for loans and start-up capital is still far too hard to come by.

We are busy ensuring that our laws and regulatory framework make enterprise development easy, and we need better back-end support resources so that future business people like yourselves can concentrate on the business of creating wealth, and find the necessary support for your venture. The other critical factor is that the world out there is intensely competitive. Globalisation and the accompanying growth of information and communication technologies ensures that what we do in South Africa today, the decisions we make, the products we produce, the challenges we face, are instantly known throughout the world.

South Africa is a very unusual country in many respects. It is a land full of such promise, and yet one which has been severely damaged by the scourge of apartheid - to such an extent that we seem to be playing catch-up to the world all the time. The World Economic Forum, in its latest Global Competitiveness Report, gave us the same ranking as it did last year, as the 32nd most competitive country in the world. Yet, along with other countries in this category it classified us among the most promising emerging markets in the world.

I therefore urge you to become entrepreneurial through this project and other ventures in order to turn the current situation around for the better. The essence of the entrepreneur is his/her mind, spirit and passion.

Spread all of these around as you go forward, and let's make South Africa a nation to be counted among the world's finest because people like you can make it happen.

As we approach the end of 2001, let us rededicate ourselves to make South Africa a better country and for each to work exceptionally hard to improve our conditions and that of our fellow citizens. We as government have created the necessary policy frameworks and structures and now, in partnership with other sectors in society and the youth themselves, we have to ensure the successful and speedy implementation to these progressive policies.

In conclusion, let me again congratulate the initiators of the project, the "Youth Enterprise Development Project" for this bold initiative.

This will go a long way to impart the necessary skills to the youth to become entrepreneurial, create their own ventures eventually and to improve the conditions in this region for the better so that our people can benefit. It is important that people take the initiative, instead of merely lamenting and waiting on government to turn situations around.

Government and the private sector can then further assist through partnerships to make these ventures a success. It is these first small steps that later become giant steps of success.

I therefore wish you everything of the best and that this project will grow from strength to strength in the future and that your success would be multiplied.

I thank you.

Issued by: The Presidency, 6 December 2001