Youth unemployment crisis: 5,787 new jobs created in South Africa's global business services sector
Image: Phill Magakoe AFP
In the face of a youth unemployment crisis, 5 787 jobs for young people have been created in the global business services (GBS) sector, a catch-all phrase for outsourced services that support business operations across multiple locations or regions.
People employed in this sector provide services in aspects such as finance, HR, IT, and customer service.
According to the October to December 2024 GBS Sector Job Creation Report by Business Process Enabling South Africa (BPESA), 6 290 new net jobs for international companies were recorded between October to December 2024, with 92% of these being for younger South Africans.
For the 2024 calendar year, the GBS industry created 20,518 jobs, having grown three-fold in just five years.
BPESA CEO, Reshni Singh, said that the 'continued growth and job creation are a testament to our industry's commitment to building careers for South Africans, especially our youth and those from marginalised communities'.
Around 10 million South Africans aged 15 to 24 encounter significant challenges when entering the workforce, with unemployment rates notably higher than those of older youth.
'For many young South Africans, landing a job is more than just a milestone, it is a crucial step toward economic independence and inclusion. Yet for millions, this first step remains out of reach,' Statistics South Africa said in a data print released mid-month.
Half of all citizens between 15 and 24 years of age were unemployed in 2015. Ten years later, this number has jumped to 62.4%, said Statistics South Africa in its research.
Video Player is loading.
Play Video
Play
Unmute
Current Time
0:00
/
Duration
-:-
Loaded :
0%
Stream Type LIVE
Seek to live, currently behind live
LIVE
Remaining Time
-
0:00
This is a modal window.
Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window.
Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan
Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan
Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan
Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque
Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps
Reset
restore all settings to the default values Done
Close Modal Dialog
End of dialog window.
Advertisement
Next
Stay
Close ✕
Ad Loading
BPESA's report showed that most of the jobs created as a result of expanding GBS activities into South Africa were in the Western Cape at 49.7%, followed by KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, and Eastern Cape. Cape Town is South Africa's business process outsourcing capital.
Statistics South Africa's research showed that the situation regarding unemployed youngsters is worse in the North West and the Eastern Cape provinces, where 'the plight of unemployed youth deepens into economic exclusion'.
In the first three months of 2025, the North West province recorded a youth unemployment rate of 58,8%, while only 43,0% of its young people aged 15 to 34 were active in the labour market. In the Eastern Cape, the picture is similarly serious, the agency said.
'With an unemployment rate of 54,3% and the lowest youth labour force participation rate nationally at 39,8%, fewer than four in ten young people are either employed or looking for work,' Statistics South Africa said of the situation in the Eastern Cape.
Singh noted that BPESA was in ongoing discussions with the Department of Trade, Industry, and Competition around a revised incentives package for the industry and was 'confident that with the right level of support the sector will drive further economic upliftment while showcasing South Africa's distinctive flair in servicing international customers'.
The current GBS incentives include a rand-value grant per job over a five-year period and can be as much as R280 000 for every seat filled by an international company that relocates operations to South Africa.
The bulk of the jobs were created in the utilities and energy sector, followed by retail and eCommerce and then insurance, BPESA's report showed.
IOL
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Citizen
14 minutes ago
- The Citizen
Electricity demand ‘met 97% of the time' this winter, Eskom says
Eskom said the system continues to operate reliably, enabling it to meet winter electricity demand effectively. Eskom says it has met electricity 97% of the time this bitter winter, with the power grid stable as the country moves into a warmer climate. The power utility's spokesperson Daphne Mokwena said the system continues to operate reliably, enabling Eskom to meet winter electricity demand effectively. Demand Mokwena said when system constraints do arise, they are managed through the 'targeted use of emergency reserves during morning and evening peak periods.' 'Electricity demand has been met over 97% of the time during the winter season and the financial year to date. Since 15 May 2025, South Africa has experienced no load shedding, with only 26 hours recorded between 1 April and 14 August 2025. 'With just over two weeks remaining in Eskom's Winter Outlook period, the power system remains well-positioned to maintain stability and reliably meet demand,' Mokwena said. Load shedding Mokwena added that the winter outlook, published on 5 May 2025, covering the period ending 31 August 2025, remains valid. 'It indicates that load shedding will not be necessary if unplanned outages stay below 13 000MW. If outages rise to 15 000MW, load shedding would be limited to a maximum of 21 days out of 153 days and restricted to stage 2.' 'Good space' Last week, Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa said Eskom was in a good space and South Africans shouldn't worry about the utility burning through billions of rands in diesel to keep the lights on because it was all part of the plan. Briefing the media on the state of the electricity grid on Wednesday, Ramokgopa said it was no secret that Eskom experienced 'significant challenges'. 'At the beginning of the financial year, in April, we relied more and more on the diesel to be able to support us, and this diesel was able to support us because it's meant to support us during those periods of difficulty.' ALSO READ: Eskom burns nearly R6 billion on diesel to keep lights on during winter ICU to general ward Ramokgopa said the return to service of Kusile Unit 6 and Medupi Unit 4 were among the reasons there has been no load shedding this winter. He also said improvements at other power stations have eased the burden on Eskom. 'One of those exceptional performers, from an improvement point of view, is Tutuka. So we've gotten back units 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, that's exceptional. So now we take that station from an ICU. It's in a general ward, now it will work on its own, and then it starts running. When it starts running, the light will just be on and on and on.' Ramokgopa said that as South Africa marks nearly 90 days without load shedding, they want to make electricity affordable. ALSO READ: Eskom adds more power to electricity grid as G20 summit approaches
The Citizen
44 minutes ago
- The Citizen
France joyride for delegation as driver licence backlog soars
About 600 000 licences were waiting to be printed, with many applicants having to wait months for their cards. As the country battles with only one driver's licence card machine, a seven-person transport department delegation enjoyed a trip to France to examine an expensive smart-card machine owned by a company bidding for a tender, although the device was not present during the visit. This comes as almost 600 000 South Africans wait for their new driving-licence cards produced by a machine plagued by constant breakdowns. Licence delegation The delegation, comprising five bid-evaluation committee (BEC) members and two technical advisers, could not explain why they had chosen to visit France instead of either the Czech Republic or Greece. There are only two sites where the machine, which prints blank polycarbonate cards, could be viewed, according to The Sunday Times. Instead, they looked at an 'unrelated' machine owned by the company. Runaround According to the paper, after two days in France, the delegation moved on to Amsterdam for a site visit to inspect a second machine that would personalise the cards in a process whereby security features and the card owner's personal details and biometrics are embedded in them. However, the company had claimed in its bid document that its machine could be viewed only in Morocco or Burkina Faso. ALSO READ: The driver's licence machine is fixed, but another problem remains While it is unclear if transport department officials examined the correct printer, an investigation by the auditor-general (AG) found that two members of the delegation did not even view the machine. Response Transport Department spokesperson Collen Msibi told The Citizen on Monday that procuring a new driving-licence card machine was now on hold owing to the declaratory order application and could not comment on the trip to France and the Netherlands, as the matter was before the courts. 'I can confirm that it is indeed the department that approached the court for a declaratory order. We can not comment any further since the matter is already in court. We shall await the outcomes of court proceedings.' According to the publication, the transport department's acting director-general, Mathabatha Mokonyama, said in his founding affidavit that the delegation had been unable to explain why they went to France rather than the Czech Republic. Efforts to buy a new printer have been underway since 2021, but have been fraught with missteps. Licence machine South Africa's only driver's licence card printer has been plagued by breakdowns. The machine has been out of order since January, resulting in a significant backlog in issuing driver's licences. Few to no cards have been issued since the start of the year. In July, Transport Minister Barbara Creecy said her department struck an agreement with the Government Printing Works to provide a backup if the existing fault-prone machine is out of service. Irregularities Creecy said the AG found irregularities in the procurement process of the new driver's licence card machine. 'It is a matter of public record that the department has taken a self-review application on this matter to the courts. The old card machine is currently fixed, and we are hard at work to clear out the printing backlog of licence cards.' ALSO READ: Driver's licence expired while printing machine is broken? Here's what you should do Legal battle In March, Creecy instructed her department to file a high court application for a declaratory order regarding the R400 million tender for a driving licence card machine. This was after the AG identified irregularities over the preferred bidder Idemia's South Africa contract. In September last year, the transport department appointed French multinational identity technology company Idemia as the preferred bidder for the multimillion-rand tender to procure a new driver's licence printing machine. Idemia blow However, a week before Idemia was selected, it was dealt a blow, with Airports Company South Africa (Acsa) cancelling a deal that would have seen the French company provide technology like self-boarding gates at nine South African airports. Audit In September 2024, Creecy instructed the AG to expedite and widen the audit scope for the new driving licence card procurement process after new evidence emerged of alleged serious irregularities in the decision to make Idemia the preferred bidder. According to the report, the AG identified instances of non-compliance with the required procurement processes. The AG also found that the identified instances of non-compliance were due to the DLCA's inadequate budget analysis, which is part of the demand management process. 'Bids are not being evaluated according to the evaluation criteria as per the bid specifications and scoring is inconsistent during the bid evaluation process.' Old machine The existing licence card printing machine is 26 years old and has experienced almost 160 breakdowns, which have become more frequent. The transport department told the Sunday Times that 539 947 licences were waiting to be printed, with many applicants having to wait months for their cards. ALSO READ: I renewed my driving licence, it was a breeze and stress-free
The South African
10 hours ago
- The South African
Has Miss SA 2025 been cancelled?
Rumours are swirling that the 2025 Miss South Africa (Miss SA) pageant has been canned after coming under new ownership. However, organisers have insisted that this isn't the case, despite an official date not being set. The speculation comes amid the resignation of former CEO Stephanie Weil, who recently stepped down after helming the company since 2019. The pageant has yet to announce the Top 30 finalists. This week, Miss SA organisers confirmed that the pageant would go ahead this year, albeit at a later date. 'That's not correct', spokesperson Kenneth Makhanya said this week. In a press statement last month, organisers said the event would take place later in 2025 to 'ensure the alignment with international and other global events.' When does the Miss SA 2025 take place? Images via Instagram: @official_misssa It added: 'The organisation, through its affiliated companies, aims to broaden the reach and impact of the pageant and its contestants. Organisers stated that the pageant would be rebranded to include the pillars of entrepreneurship, job creation, cultural awareness, and social cohesion. The Miss SA organisation now forms part of the Motsepe Group of Companies, owned by Patrice Motsepe, one of South Africa's wealthiest businessmen. Last month, Africa Fashion International (AFI) – the fashion partner of Miss SA – revealed that it was now the 'sister company' of the beauty pageant. AFI is run by Dr Precious Moloi-Motsepe, the wife of Patrice Motsepe. Miss SA was previously owned by Stephanie Weil's Weil Entertainment, who succeeded Sun International's reign. Meanwhile, South Africans and pageant fans are wondering who will represent the country at the Miss Universe pageant, which takes place on 21 November in Thailand. If a new Miss SA is not crowned in time for the international competition, it's unlikely reigning queen Mia Le Roux will compete again. Last year, the partially-deaf winner dropped out of the competition during the preliminary stages, citing health reasons. DO YOU THINK THE MISS SA PAGEANT HAS RUN ITS COURSE? Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X, and Bluesky for the latest news.
