DISBURSEMENT OF MYDF AT ADVANCED STAGE FOR YOUTH EMPLOYMENT INITIATIVES

13 September 2022

The disbursement of funds to support youth enterprises in Mpumalanga is at an advanced stage. The Mpumalanga Provincial Government established the Mpumalanga Youth Development Fund (MYDF) as one of the measures to confront youth unemployment. The MYDF is a three (3) year pilot project, aimed at supporting job creation initiatives and enterprise development by the youth.

In the 2021-22 financial year, Mpumalanga Premier, Ms Refilwe Mtshweni-Tsipane announced a R90 million allocation for the realization of the youth employment aspirations. By end of the fourth quarter of the period under review, more than R81 million rand had been transferred to the Mpumalanga Economic Growth Agency (MEGA) for disbursement to sixty four (64) companies, which were approved through a rigorous process of adjudication and verification.

In the 2022-23 financial year, Premier Mtshweni-Tsipane announced a R60 million allocation during the State of the Province Address (SoPA) to cater for a new intake, with 20 May 2022, set as a deadline for new applications. “We have doubled our efforts to disburse funds allocated through the MYDF, and this has yielded positive results. Both the adjudication and verification processes are conducted with integrity, on youth-owned enterprises to ensure that only legitimate applications which meet the set criteria, are approved,” the Premier stated.

Of the sixty (60) beneficiaries, 21 are from Ehlanzeni and Nkangala Districts respectively, while 18 of them are from the Gert Sibande District. The supported enterprises are in various sectors such as farming, mining and transportation, and create job opportunities, targeting the youth.

The Premier is adamant that through the MYDF intervention, the Provincial Government will flatten the high youth unemployment curve in the province. She added that more interventions to address youth unemployment, will be explored through the Mpumalanga Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan (MERRP).

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Issued by the Mpumalanga Provincial Government

(A) Provincial Government’s Spokesperson: George Mthethwa
Tel: (013) 766 2242
Mobile: 083 302 2774
E-mail: gpmthethwa@mpg.gov.za