28/01/2026
Local Government Roundtable Series in the municipalities.
Dear Leaders and Practitioners,
Local Government Roundtables on Youth Development in South Africa, such as the inaugural 2017 Local Government Youth Development Conference and 2025 Kagiso Trust initiatives, aim to enhance youth participation in governance, address high unemployment, and drive local economic development (LED).
These forums bring together government, business, civil society, and key stakeholders to strengthen service delivery, foster innovation, and implement National Youth Policies at the municipal level.
Key Focus Areas and Challenges:
1. Youth Unemployment - discussions will center on the 42% unemployment rate for youth (15-35).
2. Skills development - discussions will center on the need for skills development to match industry needs.
3. Local Governance Gaps - key challenges identified include disjointed governance, lack of dedicated youth development officers/coordinators or practitioners in municipalities.
4. The absence of youth development policies and poor implementation of the youth development strategies.
5. Innovation & Digital Inclusion - the planned roundtables will emphasize the use of science, technology, and innovation (STI) for development, while addressing the digital divide where youth have smartphones but lack access to e-learning.
6. Inclusive Participation -Efforts to ensure representation in municipal Integrated Development Plans (IDPs) and tackle the gendered nature of youth development forms
7. Energy sector - Youth involvement in the energy sector is critical for driving the global shift toward a low-carbon, sustainable future, particularly in Africa where a growing youth population offers a significant demographic dividend.
8. Water sector - Youth involvement in the water sector focuses on integrating young people as partners in decision-making, policy development, and sustainable management of water resources, rather than mere beneficiaries.
9. Infrastructure sector - Infrastructure sectors are increasingly crucial for tackling youth unemployment through targeted skills development, training, and employment initiatives, particularly in construction and built environment projects.
10. Local Government Elections - The Electoral Commission is responsible for the election of councillors to municipal councils in between general elections. There are two categories of councillors. The first category is ward councillors. The second category of councillors are Proportional Representative (PR) councillors who are elected from lists of parties to represent the party in the municipal council in proportion to the votes each party receives in an election. The planned series of Roundtable in the nine provinces will assemble youth from municipalities across the country, and is geared to ensuring that young people are at the forefront of leading development.as councillors speakers, members of the mayoral committees and executive mayors.
We invite all the government departments, sector education and training authorities, business community, state owned companies, civil society and key Stakeholders to partner with us in hosting the successful series of roundtables in the municipalities.
These roundtables strive to transition from dialogue to action, creating sustainable, long-term programmes rather than once-off events.
Yours in development,
