What was meant to be a peaceful demonstration against Bantu education policies by the learners, was met with much contention from the apartheid police. The march ended with 170, mostly young people, losing their lives.
Forty-six years later, the fight for liberation still seems like a far-fetched dream where the majority of previously disadvantaged South Africans are faced with poverty, lack of opportunities to education, lack of access to sanitation and a very high unemployment rate. According to a report released at the end of May by Statistics South Africa, the total number of persons employed stood at 14, 9 million, while the number of unemployed people was slightly less than half that amount in the 1Though the official unemployment rate decreased from 35,3% in the fourth quarter of 2021 to 34,5% in the first quarter of 2022, experts say that young people remain vulnerable in the labour market.
In celebrating the vibrancy of South African youth and their determination to overcome adversity, we speak to two young entrepreneurs namely, Ayanda Mkhize who is a baker and online baking instructor and Moaaz Casoojee, the founder of Mcas Trading, which specialises in Halaal certified condiments. Bridget Lepere is in conversation with the two, she finds out how they started their business without employment and in the midst of the COVID- 19 pandemic.