Presidential address to spotlight decade-long employment strategy
President Cyril Ramaphosa is set to deliver the keynote address at the On the Record Summit this morning, with job creation and the country's persistent unemployment crisis dominating the agenda. The two-day gathering, hosted at the Cape Town International Convention Centre, operates under the ambitious theme of generating five million jobs over the next decade.
The summit seeks to develop actionable solutions to meet that employment target within ten years. Organised around small, focused groups of expert practitioners spanning fields that influence economic growth and employment, the event follows an extensive nine-month research initiative conducted by the Africa Centre. That process involved consultations with approximately 60 prominent South Africans drawn from academic, business and civil society circles to identify concrete measures for large-scale job creation.
"That is why as we rebuild the economy, we are creating work and livelihood opportunities on a large scale through public and social employment programmes."
During last month's State of the Nation Address, Ramaphosa described unemployment as "a matter of national concern" and pointed to existing programmes already making a tangible difference. He highlighted the Presidential Employment Stimulus, which has converted dumping sites into parks and vacant yards into community gardens in areas such as Standerton in Mpumalanga. The SA Youth platform has connected millions of young South Africans with work and learning opportunities, while the Youth Employment Service — a joint initiative between government and the private sector — has placed more than 200 000 young people in year-long workplace experiences.
Regulatory adjustments are also on the horizon this year to simplify business participation in the Youth Employment Service. The government plans to broaden public employment initiatives, including the Community Works Programme, the Expanded Public Works Programme and the Presidential Employment Stimulus, ensuring better coordination to deliver income support, skills development and pathways to sustained employment — particularly for young people and women. Employment equity targets for persons with disabilities in the public service are being raised to seven percent by 2030, with a matching seven percent preferential procurement target across all government and public entities.
Investment pledges surpass trillion-rand milestone
On the skills front, the proportion of the skills development levy returned to employers will be restored to its original level of 40 percent, and the National Skills Fund will be restructured into a more responsive, outcomes-focused instrument supporting unemployed youth in accessing workplace experience and employment.
"For more than 15 years, our economy has experienced low growth. All our actions now are driven by the need for rapid and inclusive economic growth to create more jobs and better quality jobs."
Cabinet has endorsed a comprehensive implementation plan anchored in the Medium Term Development Plan, aimed at stimulating growth through a stable macroeconomic framework, functional infrastructure investment, a supportive regulatory environment and forward-looking industrial policy. Priority sectors include the digital and green economies, identified as key areas where young South Africans will find future employment.
The South African Investment Conference has proven a powerful vehicle for attracting capital, with the past five editions securing approximately R1.51 trillion in investment pledges — comfortably exceeding the original R1.2 trillion target. Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition Parks Tau noted that more than R600 billion of those commitments have already materialised, resulting in new factories, mines and industrial facilities that are driving sustainable employment and poverty reduction.
"We have embarked on market and export diversification through our Butterfly Strategy and are redesigning transformation through the Transformation Fund and B-BBEE policy review."
The 2026 investment conference arrives amid improved global sentiment towards South Africa, following the country's removal from the Financial Action Task Force greylist and marginal but positive economic growth. Steadying inflation and an S&P Global credit rating upgrade from BB- to BB with a positive outlook have further bolstered confidence, as industrial reforms and export diversification strategies begin to yield results.
South Africa's unemployment rate remains among the highest globally, making any large-scale employment strategy directly relevant to millions of households struggling with poverty and inequality. The summit's outcomes could shape investment flows, skills development funding, and regulatory frameworks affecting businesses of all sizes for the coming decade. With improved credit ratings and growing investor confidence, the country faces a critical window to translate pledges and policy commitments into sustained, measurable job creation across priority sectors.
