The Northern Cape has one of the highest rates of households experiencing hunger in the country.
THE NORTHERN Cape has one of the highest rates of households experiencing hunger in the country.
Northern Cape Premier Dr Zamani Saul said during his recent State of the Province Address that he was “concerned” about the 10 percent increase in food insecure households.
“More than half of the households with young children that experienced hunger are living in urban areas. The R350 social relief of distress grant has become a lifeline for many people who lost their source of income during the Covid-19 pandemic,” said Saul.
He stated that 70 new nutrition centres would be established in the Province during the 2022/23 financial year.
“Provincial government continues to work with different stakeholders, government, non-governmental organisations and civil society to address food insecurity. We will ramp up our efforts to support subsistence farmers with garden starter packs and garden equipment in all five districts.”
Saul claimed that the unemployment rate in the Province was the lowest than it has been in the past 14 years.
“The number of unemployed persons in the Northern Cape decreased from 116,000 to 95,000 during the fourth quarter of 2022 according to the StatsSA quarterly labour force survey. The total number of persons employed now in the Province is 336,000.
“The female unemployment rate (19.1 percent) in the Northern Cape is lower than the male unemployment rate at 24.4 percent.”
Saul boasted that the Province also had the lowest youth unemployment rate, at 30.1 percent.
“We have made these strides despite the challenges posed by the intermittent load shedding. ”
He added that an expert team would be established by the MEC for Youth, Women, Disability, Children, Communication and e-Government to tackle youth unemployment and co-ordinate youth service centres across the Province.
Saul said that R14.9 million would be made available for skills development through the Premier’s Bursary Fund for the 2024/25 financial year.
