South Sudan Minister decries high youth unemployment
By Staff writer
South Sudanese national minister of Labor Gen. James HothMai has expressed concerned over the current high youth unemployment in the country following recent violent protests by youth demanding jobs in various states.
Mai during the meeting of the High-Level Committee for Youth Employment chaired by the First Vice President Riek Machar on Thursday said they have devised ways of addressing unemployment problem.
He said that the meeting acknowledged that youth unemployment is a national issue that threatens national security.
Mai revealed that the meeting resolved to address youth unemployment by compelling each ministry in the transitional unity government to submit report on how to resolve the issue.
“The High-Level Committee agreed to reconvene on 19th August 2021 to receive and compile reports of the various ministries on how to resolve the youth unemployment in South Sudan,” said Mai.
In July, youth in Eastern Equatoria State violently attacked NGOs and UN agencies demanding access to jobs they said they were being given to people outside their state.
These youth harassed and injured some humanitarian workers, leading the national government to set up ad-hoc committee to look into the issue.
The committee is headed by Machar and deputized by Hussein Abdel Baggi Akol, Vice President for Service Cluster and Rebecca Nyandeng De Mabior, Vice President for Gender and Youth Cluster. It also includes representatives from theMinistries of Interior, Justice and Constitutional Affairs, National Security, Labor, Public Service and Human Resources Development, Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management, and Youth and Sports.
It is tasked to make an in-depth study and provide a clear roadmap on how to permanently resolve the issue of youth unemployment.
