At present, less than 10% of the unemployed actively looking for work are absorbed into the labour market each year. What about the 90% who will not make it? What are our strategies to support the economic inclusion of this large group of people – who are mainly young? This Development Dialogue focused on lessons – and opportunities – from the Presidential Employment Stimulus, which has supported over two million jobs and livelihood opportunities since its inception in 2020. It looked at the role such publicly funded employment programmes can play in support of complementary livelihoods, self-employment and enterprise development pathways for those marginalised from other employment opportunities in our economy - and what that means for how such programmes are designed.

What happens to Sasol’s Secunda Coal-toChemicals-and-Liquids facility, which is a major contributor to the domestic economy, illustrates the difficulties South Africa faces in its transition to a lower-carbon future. Sasol, the only domestic source of petrochemicals for a myriad of downstream industries, is heavily reliant on coal, and hence is a major greenhouse gas emitter. Increasing carbon taxes, environmental pressures and potential carbon border adjustment mechanisms (CBAM), combined with declining coal and gas reserves that could affect its export markets, cloud its future.

This development dialogue will discuss the recently released TIPS report that explores these issues, other constraints facing Sasol and policy options going forward. Read the paper and policy brief here.