Premier Makhura’s Tshepo 1 Million Programme fails Gauteng youth

21 May 2020

The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng is concerned that the Office of the Premier has failed to meet its target of training of 200 000 economically excluded youth as part of the Pathways to Earning through the Tshepo 1 Million programme.  Premier David Makhura’s Office only managed to place 127 426 economically excluded youth through the programme.

This information was revealed in the fourth quarterly report for the Office of the Premier for the 2019/2020 financial year.

According to the report, the Thint’iMillion programme could not commence during the fourth quarter due to a delay in preparation from both Microsoft licensing and alignment with the school’s programme.

The Tshepo 1 Million programme’s main aim is to assist the youth with skills training, job placement and entrepreneurship development. It is concerning that Premier Makhura’s Office failed to meet its set target for this year as our youth are in desperate need of training and skills development. His Office is failing to lead by example yet he is always talking about creating employment opportunities for the youth.

Programmes like Tshepo 1 Million are important as they provide our youth with opportunities to find jobs or to start their own small businesses, especially at time when the country and the rest of the world are dependent on using technology to do business.

It is imperative that government embarks on training programmes that will equip our people with skills, particularly the youth as this will help them seek out sustainable job opportunities.

I will be tabling further questions in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature to ascertain what measures will be put in place to ensure that the targets set for the Tshepo 1 Million projects are met.

Issued bySolly Msimanga,DA Gauteng Leader of the Opposition, 21 May 2020