The National Youth Development Agency (NYDA), an agency mandated to address youth unemployment, is renting offices in a posh part of Johannesburg, which is inaccessible to the very people it must serve. This week, the Portfolio Committee on Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities slammed this disconnect between agency’s resource allocation and the urgent needs of the youth.
The committee is on an oversight visit in Gauteng, where Members raised concerns about the agency’s projected R45 million in lease and rental costs. The biggest chunk of this spending is on office space for its head office in Sandton.
The committee highlighted the disparity between the agency’s spending on rental costs and the experiences of approximately 4.6 million unemployed youth. “There is a fundamental contradiction in paying for expensive, posh offices while millions of young people are excluded from economic opportunities,” said the Chairperson of the committee, Ms Liezl van der Merwe. “Every rand must be directed towards interventions that expand access, create jobs and advance sustainable livelihoods.”
The committee also emphasised the importance of accessible NYDA offices as it will enable the youth to take advantage of the agency's programmes. “It is difficult to justify premium office space that does not serve the very constituency the agency is mandated to support. This raises serious concerns about value for money and whether current spending patterns are aligned with the agency’s core mission,” the Chairperson said.
The committee urged both the department and the NYDA to channel resources towards high-impact, youth-centred programmes. These include initiatives aimed at job creation, skills development, entrepreneurship support and expanded economic participation. In addition, the committee encouraged the NYDA to accelerate the use of digital platforms and mobile outreach units to improve access to services, particularly for young people in underserved and remote communities.
The committee will continue its oversight programme by visiting NYDA offices to assess working conditions, as part of its commitment to ensuring that public institutions deliver meaningful impact for the people they serve.
By Malatswa Molepo
28 April 2026
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