By Khulile Thwala
The Ministries of Commerce, Industry and Trade along with that of Sport, Culture and Youth Affairs on Thursday launched an incubation centre for youth-owned businesses at Ludzeludze.
This is the second youth incubation centre to be launched in just over a year. The incubation centre is a result of collaboration between the government, Junior Achievement (JA) Eswatini, Eswatini National Youth Council and UNICEF.
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It seeks to empower 60 young entrepreneurs. Speaking during the event, Minister of Commerce Manqoba Khumalo said the country was facing a huge challenge of an economic meltdown just like other countries globally.
Therefore, it was their mandate to ensure that youth participation in the economic recovery of the country is prioritised in all sectors and industries. He implored all stakeholders to support and embrace this initiative in every possible way.
“My ministry has done everything in its power to ensure that young people contribute to the economy through different interventions. I would like to encourage all young people to utilise these opportunities for their business growth.”
Minister of Sports Harries Madze Bulunga in his remarks said the country faced a youth unemployment challenge where 58.1 per cent of young people are unemployed. According to statistics from UNDP, of the 33 per cent unemployed national workforce, 58.2 per cent are young men and women, and 50.1 per cent are graduates.
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“As a government, we have also developed a national youth policy, with the aim to improve the lives of young people in Eswatini. This policy forms the basis for developing opportunities for all young people such as this being launched today. The youth policy also seeks to provide a common and mutual understanding of the importance and areas of youth development among all concerned groups and individuals in Eswatini and to set guidelines for the address of youth-related issues.”
Also in attendance was UNICEF Country Representative Amina Mohammed, who said this was a way to support the youth to thrive.
