Ramaphosa to host pre-Sona dialogue focusing on jobs for young people

President Cyril Ramaphosa will hold a youth dialogue on Wednesday ahead of his state of the nation address (Sona) the following day.

The presidency said on Tuesday that the dialogue would be a platform for the country's youth to discuss the direction they hope the country will take.

The dialogue takes place the day before Ramaphosa's much-anticipated Sona on Thursday, with South Africans hoping he will address a number of socio-economic challenges, such as unemployment, gender-based violence and the  energy crisis. 

The presidency added that the focus of the dialogue would be on getting input from young people on how to create jobs for them.

The Sona youth dialogue is themed "Grow South Africa together" and will be facilitated by young people.

Statistics SA meanwhile revealed on Tuesday that the country's unemployment remained unchanged at 29.1%. 

The report also indicated that the number of employed people went up by 45,000 to 16.4-million. The number of those who were unemployed decreased by 8,000 to 6.7-million in the fourth quarter of 2019 from the third quarter.

"The youth dialogue is aimed at bringing together young entrepreneurs, young people living with disabilities, youth formations and students to discuss progress that the country has made thus far and their role in the growth South Africa," said the presidency.