Why entrepreneurship is the way to go in South Africa! Unemployment in South Africa as at the second quarter of 2012 was reported as being at 24.9 %. This is calculated as the number of people actively looking for a job as a percentage of the labour force. Unemployment is a vexing problem for governments throughout the world as it creates instability in the economy and can lead to political instability as witnessed in Egypt (where unemployment reached 11.9% and was one of the key drivers to the revolution). South Africa’s high unemployment rate is only eclipsed by Zimbabwe, Djibouti, Namibia, Senegal, Kenya, Swaziland and Mauritania (Africapedia). As the Gateway to Africa, South Africa has numerous opportunities to lower the unemployment rate via foreign investment as well as entrepreneurship. However the beleaguered education system which was highlighted by the Limpopo textbook debacle in 2012 as wells as teachers’ strikes have0 placed increased pressure on the vast majority of students who are still to matriculate and find formal employment in various sectors. Even with a matric certificate, school leavers still struggle to find a job. This is attributed to the declining pass rate in the maths and science subjects, despite the increase in the overall matric pass rate. Furthermore, there has also been a drop in the pass rate for economics due to learners having difficulty with questions based on contemporary economic issues. These subjects form the fundamental basis for employers to consider matriculants for possible internships and thus are necessary in the initial job application process. Youth entrepreneurship is a vital component in the unemployment challenge that South Africa faces. However, there are various factors that need to be addressed in ensuring that entrepreneurship becomes a viable solution to the unemployment situation. The challenges that are noted above with regard to unemployment are pertinent to the factors that affect entrepreneurship. The South African education system, funding criteria from private and governmental institutions as well as entrepreneurial culture are factors that influence the development of youth entrepreneurship in South Africa. An article in The Times stated that “An 18-year-old girl who passed matric last year but cannot afford to continue to study has a 4% chance of getting a job with a salary of R4000 a month within five years of leaving school. It further stated that “Should she get piece jobs, she will live below the newly announced poverty line of R400 a month for all her working life and her only hope of earning decent pay is when she reaches pensionable age”. This article provides a very stark contrast to the expectations of school leavers and for the concept of employment. Thus entrepreneurship appears to be the saving grace for individuals who want to progress prior to their pensionable age. The problem statement that emerges from this is: Has their basic education sufficiently prepared them for the basics of entrepreneurship, will they be able to fund their business and does the South African business climate support youth entrepreneurship? The perception of this writer is that not enough is being done to garner the spirit of entrepreneurship amongst the youth of this country. From grassroots level to the point where youth eventually join the working masses, entrepreneurship is considered to be the domain of a privileged few. Until this perception is destroyed and youth are educated in the basic principles of the discipline, South Africa will slowly lose its entrepreneurial spirit and the youth of South Africa will depend only on opportunities provided within the formal Government and private sectors.
Posted on: Tue, 25 Jun 2013 14:12:49 +0000
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