The fruits of the latest addition to the commitments given to the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) – the SA National Service Institute (SANSI) – were on show in a “graduation ceremony” at the SA Army Dunnottar Military Base at the weekend.
Minster Angie Motshekga, accompanied by deputies Bantu Holomisa and Richard Mkhungo (aka Hlophe) along with unnamed “senior military personnel” were at the Engineer Formation base for the event. Reporting on the Gauteng East Rand event, Ministerial spokesperson Onicca Kwakwa has it the SANSI “initiative” was supported by the Department of Defence (DoD), the CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research), AMD (Aerospace, Maritime and Defence Industries Association of SA) and other government departments.
Its aim is combatting youth unemployment and fostering economic growth, a point emphasised by Motshekga when she addressed the successful first “cohort of cadets” on Saturday 7 June.
Motshekga told the successful cadets they were part of a pivotal moment in South Africa. “We are witnessing the emergence of a new generation of empowered, disciplined and patriotic South Africans,” she said.
“You,” she told the cadets on parade, “are the first graduates of the SANSI and embody our collective aspirations. Your success demonstrates what happens when purpose meets commitment and vision drives action. As you stand here today, you symbolise hope and prove that South Africa’s future is being shaped by its young citizens”.
On the high rate of unemployment among young South Africans, the defence minister said it had “for far too long cast a daunting pall over the potential in our young people”.
“Statistics, grim and sobering as they may be, often fail to capture the true human cost. They mask the dashed dreams, stifled ambitions and quiet despair that touch millions of young South Africans. These are young individuals yearning for opportunities to contribute, thrive and build better lives for themselves and their families. We are all too familiar with these figures etched into our national consciousness.”
“South Africa,” she said further, “runs the real risk of losing an entire generation to hopelessness and poverty. That is something we simply cannot afford”.
SANSI aims to develop, capacitate and empower young unemployed technical vocational education and training (TVET) and university graduates through a purposeful and smooth skills-to-industry pipeline leading to what is termed “innovative entrepreneurship and long-term, sustainable employment”
SANSI was launched in 2024 under the leadership of the Department of Defence and Military Veterans and the SANDF as a strategic youth development initiative to tackle unemployment and social exclusion. It forms part of the broader National Youth Service Programme, which integrates civic education, character development, and sector-specific training to prepare young South Africans for productive economic participation and responsible citizenship.
