IOL News reports that Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi announced on Thursday that the province was set to relaunch Nasi Ispani in June and would be creating 32,000 jobs for assistant teachers.
Speaking at a media briefing in Midrand, he explained that the “next round of Nasi Ispani” would recruit the youth across the province, marking a major boost for youth employment and the education sector. Lesufi said he was undeterred by criticism from opposition parties on the mass recruitment programme. “The people who are criticising us on Nasi Ispani understand the effectiveness of this programme. We're not doing it for political mileage, we're doing it to fight unemployment. But what they're saying now is that you have poor homes, you've got incomplete buildings, traffic lights that have gone down, roads that are not maintained, you've got grass that is not cut. On the other side, you've got youth in the townships who are unemployed. So you train them to do the work and pay them,” Lesufi stated. The Democratic Alliance (DA) and ActionSA have consistently raised concerns regarding Lesufi's approach since the programme's initial launch in 2023. Ahead of the 2024 national and provincial elections, the initiative was characterised by some as a campaign by the ANC to garner support.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Kamogelo Moichela at IOL News
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