Johannesburg - The Minister of Public Service and Administration plans to launch a Public Service Graduate Recruitment Scheme in a bid to tackle high numbers of graduate unemployment in South Africa.
The launch is set to take place at the University of Johannesburg (UJ) on Wednesday, July 25.
DPSA said the Scheme, which was approved by Cabinet in December 2017, would offer new graduates work opportunities and training in government departments.
"This initiative came to fruition in response to the recommendation of the National Development Plan (NDP) that in order to achieve a professional public service, the State needs to be a Career of Choice, by attracting the best graduates and youth with potential to its employment service," the department said.
"The Launch will be in a form of High level Dialogue with a number of stakeholders and will contribute to the rallying theme of the Nelson Mandela and Albertina Sisulu centenary celebrations: 'Be the legacy: Celebrating the birth of a world icon and a life of service'. "
DPSA said as part of building the legacy, the dialogue would explore perspectives on Youth Development initiatives in the Public Service and interventions to promote public service as a career of choice.
The department said the Formal Central Graduate Recruitment Scheme would among other things, achieve strengthening the talent pipeline for the Public Service’s future capacity especially in scarce occupations and critical areas of service delivery (Technical Skills and Specialist Professions) as well as providing best-practice on existing graduate schemes in the public service and the principles for implementation across the public service.
Among the invited participants in the seminar will be the various beneficiaries of various graduate programmes in the public service, the current final year students in higher education institutions nationwide and other young professionals with an interest in public service.