Youth Employability programmes in South Africa: Which features work best and for whom?

ABSTRACTThis article analyses a subset of eight youth employability programmes (YEPs) operating across South Africa using a panel survey of participants. It assesses the features of these YEPs and their links to subsequent employment while controlling for individual characteristics. Each YEP delivered technical and soft skills training, alongside other programme features offered in different combinations. Additionally, a financial capability intervention comprising financial literacy and access to a savings product was randomised to half of the training sites. Job matching, soft skills training, and financial capability are all strongly associated with better employment odds. The strength of these associations depends on how different training components are combined, and on graduates’ education level and area of residence. The findings have implications for the design of active labour market policies in developing countries with large youth unemployment and fast-changing labour markets.KEYWORDS: Active labour market programmesyouth unemploymentfinancial capabilityskills training Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).Additional informationFundingThis work was supported by the Ford Foundation [grant number 0140-0188]; The National Treasury’s Government Technical Advisory Committee (no grant number); the British Academy Newton Fund [grant number AF140164]; the National Youth Development Agency (no grant number); the University of Johannesburg’s University Research Committee (no grant number); and the Department of Science and Technology/National Research Foundation South African Research Chair Initiative (SARCHi) through the SARCHi for Welfare and Social Development (no grant number). The study was granted ethical clearance by the University of Johannesburg Faculty of Humanities Research Ethics Committee.