- 150 young people to gain workplace experience
BY PHUMELELE GAMEDZE
MBABANE — For many young emaSwati, completing school or earning a qualification is only the beginning of another difficult journey — finding an employer willing to give them their first chance.
Now, 150 out-of-school young people are set to get that opportunity through the Eswatini Youth Empowerment Programme, which will place them in workplaces for six months to gain practical experience, sharpen their skills and strengthen their prospects of securing employment.
The initiative comes against the backdrop of youth unemployment standing at 48.7%, highlighting the enormous challenge confronting young people trying to enter the country’s labour market.
The programme is being implemented by the Ministry of Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs through the Eswatini National Youth Council (NYC), in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
At the heart of the intervention is one of the biggest frustrations facing unemployed young people: being told they need work experience before they can get a job, yet being unable to gain that experience without first being employed.
The programme aims to break that cycle.
Speaking on Market View, project head Professor Shabangu explained that the 150 beneficiaries would be placed in workplaces in phases rather than all at once.
Placements will depend on the availability of suitable opportunities across government and the public sector, while ensuring the programme does not disadvantage students who also require work-integrated learning opportunities as they approach graduation.
For beneficiaries who may have spent months or even years at home after completing their studies, the programme is intended to offer much more than simply somewhere to report for work.
During the six-month placement, participants will receive practical on-the-job training under the guidance of mentors and supervisors.
They will be exposed to real workplace responsibilities while developing essential skills such as communication, teamwork, professionalism, leadership and the ability to work within organisational structures.
For a young person who has never held a formal job before, that exposure could make a major difference when competing for future employment.
Professor Shabangu said findings from the State of the Youth Report had highlighted a mismatch between qualifications possessed by young people and some of the skills employers require.
A graduate may, for example, arrive at an interview with strong academic qualifications and a well-prepared curriculum vitae, only to struggle when asked to demonstrate previous workplace experience.
The six-month programme is intended to help close that gap by giving young people practical evidence of what they can do.
However, organisers have made it clear that participation does not automatically guarantee permanent employment at the end of the six months.
Some beneficiaries could impress their host organisations sufficiently to be absorbed, while others may use the experience gained to compete for opportunities elsewhere.
That is why the programme goes beyond workplace attachment.
Participants will also undergo orientation and training in CV writing, business planning, governance, leadership and mindset development — skills aimed at preparing them for both employment and entrepreneurship.
Young people are also being encouraged not to see formal employment as their only route to economic independence.
Those with viable business ideas could use their newly acquired knowledge and experience to pursue entrepreneurship opportunities through available grants, loans and other youth-support interventions.
Networking will form another important part of the programme.
Professor Shabangu said young people needed to understand the importance of building professional relationships and learning how to market their abilities.
A six-month placement may technically end at one organisation, but the relationships, references and reputation developed during that period could continue opening doors elsewhere.
A supervisor impressed by a young person’s performance, for instance, could recommend them for another opportunity or connect them with potential employers.
While the current intake of 150 beneficiaries remains small compared with the thousands of young people searching for employment, the programme represents a practical intervention towards improving young people’s readiness for the labour market.
Professor Shabangu said expanding programmes of this nature would be important if more young emaSwati were to receive the workplace exposure they desperately need.
For the 150 beneficiaries, however, the opportunity could mark an important turning point.
After months or years of submitting applications and waiting for someone to take a chance on them, six months inside a real workplace could finally give them what every young jobseeker needs most — an opportunity to show what they can do.
