EPWP to continue creating jobs

Although the EPWP's goal was to create 4,5m jobs in five years it has fallen well short of its target with 850,000 work opportunities created last year.

The conference signalled the end of the EPWP Phase II - which started in April 2009 with an objective to create 4.5m work opportunities or new jobs.

Of these, 750 000 were expected to be created by the social sector between 2009 and 2014.

Delegates at the conference heard that the EPWP achieved over 800 000 work opportunities by December 2013, higher than the target of 750 000, but a far cry from the 4,5m jobs that were supposed to be created in five years.

Many of the new opportunities created last year involved early childhood development, home community based care, the School Nutrition Programme, community crime prevention, School Mass Participation and Kha Ri Gude (a mass literacy campaign).

The sector has an obligation to create more that 1m work opportunities, as a set target towards the overall EPWP Phase 3 target of 6m work opportunities.

Representatives from government departments such as Health, Basic Education, Public Works, Community Safety and Liaison as well as the Independent Development Trust attended the conference.