The Youth Employment Service (YES), launched under a mandate from President Cyril Ramaphosa to create a million new youth jobs, has since placed nearly 55,000 young South Africans in paid 12-month work experience across more than 1,480 companies, generating over R1.4 billion in youth salaries.
What is YES and how does it actually work?
YES is a joint initiative between business, government, labour and civil society, launched to tackle South Africa’s youth unemployment crisis, where more than one in three young people face unemployment. Under the programme, participating businesses create paid 12-month work opportunities for youth aged 18 to 35, either within their own organisation or by sponsoring a placement at an SME, often within their own supply chain, a route explored further in how SMEs can help create more jobs through the YES programme.
How much has YES actually achieved since launching?
YES has generated more than R1.4 billion in youth salaries through over 36,000 jobs created since 2019, with nearly 55,000 youth participating across more than 1,480 companies to date. The programme reports a youth absorption rate of between 30% and 40%, meaning a meaningful share of participants move into permanent employment after their 12-month placement ends, not just a temporary stipend with no lasting outcome.
What role do YES Community Hubs actually play?
YES’s first Community Hub launched in Tembisa, Johannesburg, specifically to provide business infrastructure in township and rural communities, part of a broader SMME Development Strategy built around three focus areas: business development, route to market, and skills training. CEO Tashmia Ismail-Saville has described the ambition to establish 100 such hubs nationally, drawing on lessons from the Tembisa pilot to expand into high-potential areas.
Why does YES focus so heavily on getting corporate partners onboard?
Ismail-Saville frames corporates as an integral part of the solution, not just funders: “They’re an integral part of the solution, we need them to help provide placements for youth work opportunities, technology and knowledge support and funding to grow the infrastructure needed to support the YES programme.” Beyond hosting placements directly, companies can also fund infrastructure projects within YES’s community hubs, which anyone can learn more about directly through Youth Employment Service.
What’s YES’s actual theory of how SMEs create jobs at scale?
Ismail-Saville’s stated goal is turning small, one-person businesses into eight-person businesses through enterprise development programmes that improve their technology, business practices and market access. “This should be the engine of jobs creation,” she says, arguing that scaling existing small businesses, rather than only creating new ones, is the more realistic route to the programme’s job-creation targets.
Frequently asked questions
Who can participate in the YES programme as a young jobseeker?
South Africans aged 18 to 35 who are unemployed and looking for paid, quality 12-month work experience through a participating company.
How do businesses get involved with YES?
By hosting a 12-month paid youth placement directly within their organisation, or sponsoring a placement at an SME, often one within their own supply chain.
Does YES lead to permanent employment after the 12 months?
Reported absorption rates run between 30% and 40%, meaning a meaningful share of participants move into ongoing employment after their placement, though outcomes vary by company and role.
Originally published in January 2019. Updated September 2026.
