Youth Capital Welcomes Return of the Basic Education Employment Initiative
Youth Capital welcomes the return of the Basic Education Employment Initiative (BEEI) and celebrates over 200,000 young people stepping into classrooms as Education and General School Assistants across the country.
As Youth Capital, we have campaigned since 2023 for the extension and return of the BEEI – the advocacy for this programme stems from its tangible impact on youth employment and educational support. Public employment programmes are a core component of the government strategy to solve unemployment, and the need is bigger than ever now, with 1 in 2 young people between the ages of 15-34 being unemployed.
This intervention is especially crucial in provinces like the Eastern Cape and North West, which recorded both the highest unemployment rates and the lowest labour force participation rates in Q1 2025, signalling how young people in rural communities face deeper structural exclusion from the economy. ‘The BEEI remains the largest youth employment programme that targets work experience for young people, and while strengthening classroom support in the country’, says Clotilde Angelucci
The Reach and Impact of BEEI
The BEEI has drastically scaled its impact by taking place in over 20,000 schools across the country—in cities, villages, farms, and rural areas. SALDRU research confirmed that the BEEI has provided an injection of enthusiasm and promoted local spending not only among beneficiaries and their households but also in community spending with local retailers.
We can’t forget that in 2024 the programme wasn’t implemented. Although funding from the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) was allocated, it was not disbursed, putting a hard halt to the innovation that the programme had spearheaded since its inception in 2020.
The Crisis Goes Deeper
While this reinstatement is commendable, it addresses only a fraction of a much larger issue. According to Stats SA’s Q1 2024 data, the youth unemployment crisis has intensified:
– The expanded definition of unemployment sees 1 in 2 young people unemployed
– There has been an increase in the number of young people not in education, employment and training, with a gendered increase among women.
– The economy has created 2.9 million jobs for older people, and shed 856,000 young people lost their jobs from Q4 2008 to Q1 2025.
Temporary Relief Is Not Enough
Without intentional, well-funded public interventions, millions of young South Africans will remain locked out. Another telling sign is that over 1.9 million young people applied for the 200,000 positions available as part of the assistant programme. Young people are resilient, but our support needs to step up. While the BEEI offers temporary relief and valuable experience, it is imperative to establish long-term, sustainable pathways for youth employment.
Our Call to Action
We urge policymakers, educational institutions, and the private sector to collaborate in creating comprehensive strategies that:
– Facilitate transitions from public employment to the next steps in the economy
– Support strategies that enhance self-employment.
As the new cycle of the budget starts, we also encourage National Treasury to recognise the role these programmes play in reviving our stagnant economy, ringfencing funding and prioritising the socio-economic needs of young people over debt consolidation. ‘Half of SA’s workforce are young people – the opportunities are not there. The revival of the BEEI is a positive step, but to truly empower our youth, we must commit to systemic changes that offer enduring economic opportunities.’
