KZN Premier Ntuli urges youth to seize business opportunities for economic transformation
Image: Independent Newspapers Archives
KWAZULU-NATAL Premier Thami Ntuli has called on the youth to take full advantage of the business opportunities presented to them, as they have the capacity to transform the economic landscape of the province.
Ntuli addressed the Youth Fund beneficiary workshop held in Durban yesterday. He stated that the training and workshop are part of the government's intervention to equip young entrepreneurs with technical and business support. He emphasised that the workshop demonstrates the provincial government's commitment to building a more inclusive, dynamic, and opportunity-rich economy for the youth of KwaZulu-Natal.
'In July last year, during my inaugural State of the Province Address, a clear and urgent commitment was made: to place the economic empowerment of young people at the heart of KwaZulu-Natal's development agenda. That pledge was not a passing statement — it was a declaration of intent, backed by action.
'Soon after that address, the Office of the Premier convened the KwaZulu-Natal Youth Business Summit — a bold and participatory platform attended by over 1,000 youth entrepreneurs, ecosystem partners, and economic stakeholders,' he said.
The Premier stated that the objective was clear: to co-create a Provincial Youth Economic Empowerment Plan that reflects both the aspirations and lived realities of young people in our province.
'The Government of Provincial Unity — and indeed this administration at large — is deliberate, strategic, and unapologetic in its efforts to elevate young people as full and equal participants in our country's economic life.
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'We are building institutional capacity — not only within government but across development finance institutions, skills training entities, and enterprise support agencies — to ensure that the path from entrepreneurial ambition to commercial success is clear, well-funded, and well-supported. Youth empowerment is not a symbolic gesture; it is an economic imperative,' said the Premier.
He said the government recognised that when a young person is given access to capital, markets, mentorship, and an enabling policy environment, they are not only able to transform their own lives — they become engines of job creation, innovation, and social stability.
'We know that when a culture of entrepreneurship is actively cultivated among young people, it produces far-reaching dividends — not only for individuals but for the local, provincial, and national economy as a whole. When young entrepreneurs are empowered with skills, capital, and market access, they become conscious economic actors who drive productivity, generate livelihoods, and anchor resilient communities.
'The journey we are embarking on with you today must therefore not be seen as a short-term intervention but as a long-term strategic pathway. It is a pathway that must lead to your full integration into the broader economic fabric of KwaZulu-Natal — as entrepreneurs, job creators, innovators, and key contributors to the provincial GDP,' the Premier concluded.
THE MERCURY
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