‘Real jobs’ summit under way in parliament

About 200 mostly unemployed people have gathered at the gates of parliament at the start of what they say is a ‘real jobs summit’.

The participants, from as far as Mpumalanga and the Free State, say they have decided to gather in Cape Town to impress upon the government the severity of the unemployment crisis.

This is ahead of the 2020 budget speech on Wednesday. South Africa’s unemployment rate stands at 29% of which 54% are young people.

“When the government decides on things, they decide without the unemployed. This is why we say the cry of the excluded because the people who are affected are not involved in solving the solutions,” says Abraham Agulhas from the Assembly of the Unemployed.

The below graph depicts the latest unemployment rate.

Source: SABC News (sabcnews.com)