Pretoria - Minister in the Presidency Manto Tshabalala Msimang has
reassured the employees of the National Youth Commission (NYC) and Umsobomvu Youth Fund (UYF) that their jobs will be safe when the two institutions merge.
The two will merge to form the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA),
"We wish to reassure the employees of the two organisations that their jobs are safe in terms of the Labour Relations Act. Their contracts of employment will continue in the NYDA as if they were still part of the NYC and UYF," the minister said.
She added that the merger will help ensure seamless integration, sustainability and responsiveness to the demands and aspirations of the country's youth,.
According to Ms Tshabalala-Msimang, the NYDA will be formally launched by the new administration in June later this year. Parliament will soon be facilitating the appointment of board members and government is currently profiling the Chief Executive Officer position.
The agency is being created with the view to consolidate the work of the National Youth Commission and Umsobomvu Youth Fund and maximise and accelerate high-impact new and existing youth development programmes.
It will also strengthen implementation capacity especially at provincial and local levels, sustain youth development as a national priority led at the nerve centre of government and sustain public confidence in government's commitment to delivering young people from unemployment.
Briefing reporters about the process to merge the NYC and the UYF in Pretoria on Tuesday, the minister said there would be continuity of employment as employees are transferred into the NYDA.
She further said that all contracts entered into by the NYC and UYF will remain valid when the merger takes place.
"The latter arrangement is necessary to the extent that service delivery is not interrupted and for the protection of public assets in the form of monies loaned by the UYF to various business entities," she said.
As far as the Provincial Youth Commissions are concerned, government is liaising with the provinces where the responsibility of repealing Provincial Youth Commission Acts resides. The minister, however, indicated that these structures will be integrated into the NYDA gradually.
According to the minister, the NYDA does not seek to displace existing initiatives nor to marginalise and outsource youth development to poorly capacitated and resourced agencies.
"I would like to emphasise that no disruptions in the operations of the NYC and UYF are expected since the two will continue to operate until the date of the integration," she said.
Umsobomvu Youth Fund was established by government in 2001.
It was the largest investment that the government had made to address the country's youth unemployment challenge.
