Increasing Youth Employment Across Solar Hubs in South Africa

South Africa, like many countries globally, grapples with the challenge of youth unemployment. In 2025, the rate of unemployment for 15 to 34 year olds reached 46.1 % in contrast to the national average of 32.9%, according to government data from Statistics South Africa.

To address this issue, the South African government has implemented a specific programme, The Presidential Youth Employment Intervention (PYEI). Its goal is to enable more young people to move from learning to earning. As part of the PYEI, an online platform, SA Youth Mobi, is available for free and allows any person from 15 to 34 to register online and get access to learning and work opportunities. Additionally, no data is required to access the platform due to an agreement between mobile network providers and the South African Government. This actively helps to reduce barriers and allows more individuals to access the platform and apply for jobs.

Although a great initiative, many young people, especially in rural areas either don’t know about it, don’t have the means to access it, or don’t have the skills to use it. In April 2025, the training team at our Newlands Solar Community Hub started to publicise this platform at the hub and in the community. Every unemployed person visiting the hub was informed and given the opportunity to register on the platform. They were also assisted in searching for jobs, applying for jobs and preparing for their interviews.

By May 2025, 29 of the 60 people who registered on the platform at the hub had found a sales job with South African Telecommunications company T3 Telecoms SA, as part of their U Belong initiative. This included a 12-month contract to sell sim cards in their community. This initiative is being publicised at our other solar hubs in South Africa, in an effort to increase youth employment in those areas.

The Solar Community Hub (SCH) programme is developed by Computer Aid International in collaboration with Dell Technologies.