The National Empowerment Fund (NEF) has appointed Altitude Group as an implementing partner in a new Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) and job creation initiative that has created 50 employment opportunities for unemployed youth.
The six-month programme will see the NEF invest R2.25 million to support job creation, accredited skills development, and enterprise growth within a black-owned BPO operation delivering customer interaction services for ABSA Bank.
The initiative achieves a 100% absorption rate, ensuring all participating youth are permanently employed at the end of the programme.
South Africa continues to grapple with a severe unemployment crisis
According to the latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey, the official unemployment rate remains above 32%, with youth unemployment significantly higher, at more than 45% among young people aged 15–34.
These figures underscore the pressing need for practical, scalable interventions that create meaningful employment opportunities while fostering sustainable enterprises.
This initiative directly addresses that challenge by combining job creation with structured skills development in customer service, financial literacy, and digital competencies — equipping youth with transferable capabilities in a growing, technology-enabled services sector.
NEF Chief Executive Officer, Mziwabantu Dayimani, said South Africa’s unemployment crisis is most acute among young people.
“Creating 50 jobs may appear modest in isolation, but each opportunity represents dignity, income, skills, and a pathway into the formal economy. Our role as the NEF is not only to finance enterprises, but to catalyse sustainable employment and build black-owned businesses that can compete and scale. The BPO sector offers precisely that opportunity — labour absorption, skills transfer, and long-term growth potential,” Dayimani said.
He added that the NEF remains committed to financing and promoting Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment by enabling black economic participation through investment, funding, and transformation solutions that contribute to sustainable and inclusive growth.”
Structured to provide monthly stipends
The programme is structured to provide each beneficiary with a monthly stipend coupled with workplace experience and accredited training. Participants will be employed across operational levels, including call centre agents, team leaders, and supervisory roles.
Altitude Group Director, Kris Pillay, said the initiative reflects their long-standing commitment to driving economic transformation from the ground up.
“We believe that sustainable change happens when young people are not only given jobs, but are also nurtured, trained and empowered to grow. Through this partnership with the NEF, we are creating a talent pipeline that feeds into the broader BPO value chain, ensuring that the beneficiaries of today become the team leaders, managers and entrepreneurs of tomorrow,” he said.
Beyond job creation, the initiative contributes to strengthening a black-owned BPO enterprise aligned to B-BBEE principles, potential future Employee Share Ownership Programme (ESOP) participation, and revitalisation of the Johannesburg CBD through increased economic activity and expansion of South Africa’s competitive services export and outsourcing capability.
The BPO sector remains a strategic growth area within South Africa’s services economy, offering significant employment potential for youth with matric and post-matric qualifications. By supporting black-owned operators in this space, the NEF advances both industrial participation and inclusive economic transformation.
