Celebrating 27 years of uniting nurses

DENOSA statement for Youth Day: government must establish lifestyle budget to address bad outcomes of youth unemployment in SA. 

Media statement.

Friday, 16 June 2023.

PRETORIA – As today marks the 47th commemoration of the Youth Day, the Democratic Nursing Organisation of South Africa (DENOSA) is motivating for the establishment of a lifestyle budget that will help address the resultant ills caused by the high rate of youth unemployment in South Africa, or else the youth will be finished by the time more jobs are created.

This is the view of the nurses who often experience first-hand the impact of youth unemployment in communities as they often see increasingly young patients who are admitted in healthcare facilities due to depression, drug and alcohol abuse, suicide, and many other mental illnesses. 

This is as a results, DENOSA believes, of lack of preventative and rehabilitative programmes in communities for the youth, whose dreams for a brighter future are shuttered every day because they are fully qualified but are not able to find employment anywhere.

As hopelessness is growing, crime and teenage pregnancy also also thriving and stealing the future of the youth. 

DENOSA suggests strongly that, due to the crisis levels of the country’s youth unemployment, the government must put aside budget that promotes good lifestyle and healthy living for the youth as a matter of urgency. 

This will need all sorts of creativity from the government, but to not have it, or to leave things as they are currently, would be allowing the youth to be consumed and destroyed by the social ills irreparably.

Many nurses are suggesting that sports and recreation centres must be established urgently, at least at the district levels as a good start, which must be used to host preventative programmes like various sporting codes, gym, aerobics, running and creative arts. 

Equally, the nurses suggest that rehabilitation centres must be established at the same district levels as a start, to address those youths who have gone deeper into addictive destructive lifestyle like substance and alcohol abuse as a result of the rising youth unemployment. 

DENOSA believes the lack of urgency, and perhaps creativity, in addressing the current catastrophic levels of youth unemployment in the country at its various layers is tantamount to killing the future of South Africa. 

If these interventions are not prioritised, the youths will be finished by the time the economy turns around and enough jobs are created.

End.

Issued by DENOSA.

For more information and interview request, contact:

Sibongiseni Delihlazo, DENOSA Spokesperson.

Mobile: 072 584 4175.

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