South Africa needs to promote innovation and entrepreneurship if it wants to tackle mass unemployment, South African Youth Chamber of Commerce (SAYCC) president Thapelo Maleke has said.

“In an era of radical transformation, the focus should be on digital change,” he noted at the Youth in Science, Technology and Innovation Indaba, hosted by the Department of Science and Technology (DST) in Pretoria this month.

Statistics South Africa’s Quarterly Labour Force Survey for the first quarter of this year showed that the youth unemployment rate had increased to 38.6%.

“We need more entrepreneurs and start-ups in the country to boost innovation and job creation. The youth in South Africa do not start enterprises; they expect jobs to be handed to them as soon as they have a degree,” he said.

He highlighted that the youth needed to unite and create opportunities for themselves through entrepreneurial endeavours, adding that South Africa’s approach to innovation and job creation needed a lot of work.

“Entrepreneurs in the country need to be sustainable and focused on innovation and technology.”

He further said that South Africa’s youth needed to become “change agents” by promoting and introducing innovative solutions to the market.

Maleke noted that South Africa was known for violent crime, gender-based violence and protests.

“We need to turn our image around; we should be known for innovation . . . not crime. Let us turn South Africa around so that we become the home of innovation,” he said.

Maleke pleaded with agencies of the DST to partner with the SAYCC to boost innovation, technology and entrepreneurship in the country.

“We are in an era of emerging trends and technological disruption. It is constructive disruption and young South African entrepreneurs need to embrace it,” he said.

He added that collaboration between the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research and local communities was crucial to ensure funding for local entrepreneurs.

“These types of institutions must empower people.”

He highlighted that the adoption of the National Youth Policy 2020 was key to tackling youth joblessness, low skills levels and other factors that alienated young people from their communities.

Maleke pointed out that the SAYCC had started the Youth Entrepreneurship Campaign 2020 for response to the low level of young people enrolling for math and science degrees and the even lower number of students who actually graduated with math and science degrees and diplomas.