Durban – You don’t have to be politically connected to secure funding from the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA), Deputy Minister in the Presidency Buti Manamela said on Tuesday.
Manamela was speaking during a visit to a NYDA-funded youth business at Durban’s Pavillion Shopping Mall.
The deputy minister in the presidency responsible for performance, monitoring and evaluation visited Marcus Msomi’s Carwash Supreme as part of the national Imbizo week.
“What we have seen here is a young person who had an idea about an eco-friendly car wash that would not only save our environment, but also water. He has also created more than 50 jobs and is planning to expand into other areas around the country. We think this is commendable. We hope that more young people would look towards the NYDA to be able to get their businesses supported.
“What I can assure you is that this young man is not politically connected and does not know any politician. This shows that the propaganda that has been spread that the NYDA is only for the politically connected is actually false&
Fund established
Manamela said the NYDA had moved from being a loan system into a grant system.
“There is also a fund that has been established between the NYDA, Small Enterprise Finance Agency (SEFA) and the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) which is worth R27bn which we encourage young people to apply for if they want a loan of more than R100 000.”
The NYDA gives out grants from R10 000 to a maximum of R100 000 only, said Manamela.
“If a loan of R50 000 can create 54 jobs, just imagine how much more jobs can be created through such grants. We are hoping that when we go back to Parliament we will be able to secure more money for the NYDA’s grant system so that we will be able to pass that money on through to the pockets of young people so that they are able to create sustainable income for themselves and for others.
“This is a true example of what it means when we say that young people must not be earners of salaries and wages, they must be creators of work. There are still challenges, for example, in the whole of KwaZulu-Natal there is only one branch and part of our lobby for more funds is so that we have an office in each area in the province so that we are able to access the services of the NYDA, said Manamela.
5 000 grant applications
Marcus Msomi’s, 32, started Carwash Supreme four years ago with just five people and today has 54.
“I applied for a R50 000 grant from the NYDA last year because I wanted to buy more trolleys and my application was successful. I was able to buy six more trolleys. I would encourage other young people to apply as well because the money helped me expand my business, said Msomi.
NYDA chairperson Yershen Pillay said the agency received about 5 000 grant applications this year, of which 500 were approved.
“In KZN we approved 91 to the value of R2.9m. And we are pleased that Parliament has just approved another R200m of which R50m will go towards the grant. The challenge now is getting Treasury to approve, said Pillay.
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