By Yiep Joseph
South Sudan National Youth Union (SSNYU) has dispatched a team, the Youth Empowerment Committee to assess youth employment in both companies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
In an interview with this outlet, Union Chairperson Taban Paride stated that the primary goal was to gather essential data illustrating the level of youth employment in companies and non-governmental organizations.
“The aim of the survey is to get statistics because youth are complaining that the 80% employment of South Sudanese that the labor law is talking about is not really given to them,” Taban said
Taban said that the team would assess hotels, companies, and organizations among others adding that they have started their assessment.
“They (the Youth Empowerment Committee) have started today; it is their second day. So far, they have managed to collect data from three places and are still going. The exercise will continue until they collect data from all these companies,” he said.
The committee would carry out the survey or the assessment for two months, of which they will later produce a report, he added.
“After the report is completed, it will be shared with relevant authorities, like the RRC and concern Ministries, and later will be made for public consumption,” he said.
The Union Chairperson appealed to companies and non-government organizations to work hand in hand with the youth empowerment committee.
He added that the statistics would also help the union to work hand in hand with the Ministry of Labor to address youth unemployment in the country.
“This statistic will help the union on how to collaborate and work together with other stakeholders to address this issue of unemployment,” he said.
Mr. Taban revealed that there has been an outcry from the youth as many of their jobs are being taken by foreigners, a move that continues to increase the rate of unemployment in the country.
In 2022, the former Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management, Peter Mayen Majongdit, urged humanitarian organizations to comply with the provisions of Labor Act, which requires an 80% employment rate for South Sudanese citizens.
Mayen instructed that the existing employment regulations provided in the national labor laws be enforced in the humanitarian sector.
The directive states that both local and international non-governmental organizations must ensure that 80% of their staff are South Sudanese nationals, with the remaining 20% being foreign nationals.