Cllr Mokgalapa hosts Inaugural Tshwane Youth Summit

The Executive Mayor of Tshwane, Cllr Stevens Mokgalapa, hosted the Inaugural Tshwane Youth Summit.

The objective of the summit was to receive the youth's inputs and contributions and consolidate them for the purposes of the 2019/20 IDP, and to ensure that the youth is mainstreamed in the City's programmes.

This summit provides a space in which the youth can share their visions and wishes for youth development and provide a blueprint for opportunities created for youths as well as any future developmental programmes.

The City of Tshwane is in the process of consulting communities and stakeholders on the IDP and the youth is also considered to be a strategic stakeholder.

The City currently has three incubation centres and six business support centres, and two of these support centres will be turned into business hubs that will provide space for boardrooms, computers and internet access for SMMEs.

During the Youth Summit, the Executive Mayor launched #Monyetla2021, where the City will separate its economic empowerment programmes through procurement from skills development and training. The City will continue to provide support for youth development and training in order to ensure the field is accessible to all.

The Executive Mayor also announced that he will create a youth corner at our business support centres. To start with, he will provide each support centre with one laptop with Wi-Fi connectivity that will exclusively be used by young people.

The City currently has three incubation centres and six business support centres, and two of these support centres will be turned into business hubs that will provide space for boardrooms, computers and internet access for SMMEs.

The City will also, through its Tshwane Leadership and Management Academy, avail skills development, training, bursaries and internship opportunities.

One of the factors that makes Tshwane unique is that it is the city with the highest number of universities in the country, which makes our student population greater than in other cities. It is for this reason that the Executive Mayor saw it fit to create a student village. At the end of March, Council approved the utilisation of land for student accommodation in Soshanguve, and two weeks ago two buildings were put forward for proposals to develop student accommodation.