Participation in the Presidential Youth Employment Intervention (PYEI) Concept Note - Umuntu Ngumuntu Ngabantu
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Participation in the Presidential Youth Employment Intervention
(PYEI) Concept Note
Umuntu Ngumuntu Ngabantu
“Ask not what your country can do for you,
Ask what you can do for your country” - JFK
Priscilla Reddy, PhD ASSAF
Sibusiso Sifunda, PhD
1
From data to action: a social compact for Socio-behavioural change through
Community engagement.
“Communities are at the heart of any disease outbreak and health emergency
response”
1. Overall Goal
Create employment for 1000 graduate students entering a hostile and drastically changed labour market
for the period of 3 years, as set out by the Presidential Youth Employment Intervention (PYEI) under the
ambit of the Department of Higher Education and Training.
2. Problem statement
Recent graduates are entering a job market that does not have jobs for them. This project is going to
create jobs in the research and development environment where graduates are provided the opportunity
to work, engage in experiential learning and training and be mentored and capacitated especially in the
knowledge production space of research and innovation. We are not looking to reconstruct South Africa
and restore it to a pre-COVID-19 state. We need to transform society and the economy to “open new
horizons and offer new opportunities”.
3. Aims
The aim of the project is to create an internship programme for graduates to have job experience as,
behaviour change agents, administrative, financial, management assistants, and community research
assistants in order to prepare them for their future careers in order to contribute positively to the
economy and the broader South African Community.
4. Expected outcomes
4.1 Short term
Employ 1000 graduates and enroll them in an internship programme facilitated by the Human Sciences
Research Council.
4.2 Medium term
Provide training to upskill and enhance current qualifications so that they start a journey of career focus.
This will be done by means of job placements relevant to each graduate as well as strategic partnerships
with universities for further post-graduate training opportunities.
4.3 Long term
Graduates engage in sustainable and meaningful work as well as improved quality of life for them and
their families.
5. Justification for the project
According to the Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) released by Statistics South Africa, unemployment
increased by 0, 1 of a percentage point to 29, 1% in Q3 of 2019 (STATS SA: 2019). This is the highest
2unemployment rate in the country since Stats SA started measuring unemployment using the QLFS in
2008. In the aftermath of the COVID-19 global pandemic, modelling by National Treasury predicts that
1.8 million jobs and perhaps more could be lost because of the epidemic and the consequences of the
national lockdown. The challenges faced by recent graduates to find employment is therefore grave and
presents very gloomy prospects for our youth. The PYEI has committed R100 billion for employment
creation, as part of an “employment-oriented” adjustment budget that radically reprioritizes the
resources that we have to meet new and urgent demands.
Figure 1: Presidential Youth Employment Intervention
The PYEI has created an opportunity for the HSRC to implement the recommendations made for social
compacts at community level to initiate behaviour change interventions at community level. Evidence
from socio-behavioural data gathered during the COVID-19 pandemic has provided the impetus for action.
Communities at grassroots level will benefit from behaviour change agents working at community level in
collaboration with CBOs.
HSRC has the capacity and experience in implementing and managing large-scale research projects
successfully.
5.1 From data to action
The surveys done by the HSRC have provided the data to understand and elucidate human behaviour and
its context.
What the findings tell us Data to action Health promotion Municipal/Ward
strategy level intervention
Being in the situation of If the burden of disease As we lift the lockdown, Community change
lockdown could have is high and generalized, preventive behaviour agents deployed to
given 1 in 2 people a and mortality is high, change has to be tailored 4,392 wards
sense of security and so most people will likely e.g. behaviours related to working at taxi
they perceived perceive themselves at catching a taxi ranks and going
themselves to be at low high risk. door to door for
risk When the curve is All people of South Africa community health
Only 1 in 5 people flattened and the burden need to take and wellness
believe that they are at of disease appears to be responsibility for their campaigns to
high risk of infection relatively low and own behaviour
3What the findings tell us Data to action Health promotion Municipal/Ward
strategy level intervention
mortality low, then most Targeted messages have promote behaviour
people will likely to promote voluntary change.
perceive themselves to behaviour change (hand
be at low risk washing, social distancing Schools will be
(complacency due to and wearing of masks) visited as well as
lockdown success) The tipping point is clinics
If preventive behaviours between the
are not reinforced and epidemiologic, the Language must be
intensified then economic, and the local language
successes gained during social/individual
the lockdown will be lost behaviours Mediums such as
plays, songs, dance
and others should
be used at
community level
The majority of people This is important to build The message is “South As above
adhered to the upon. The country needs Africa you can do it to
regulations: to move from a situation save lives. Take control of
The results show that of being in lock down to your lives to prevent you,
99% either stayed home appealing for community your family and your
or left their homes for participation and neighbours from
food, medicine and invoking the spirit of contracting the
social grants (which Ubuntu. coronavirus”.
they were allowed to
do)
29% of people reported It is important to use the The message is that South Change agents to
that they came into psychosocial and Africans need to disrupt work at taxi ranks,
close contact with more behavioural their social relations and work with taxi
than 10 people during determinants to build a activities in order to save organisations and
the past 7 days while targeted culturally lives by adopting social companies – the
they were out of their appropriate behaviour distancing. most important
homes. change approaches Anyone can be infectious person in the taxi is
15% indicated that they regarding social with or without the person opening
had to use public distancing and its symptoms, so everyone and closing the
transport to get to the meaning in the local has a duty to protect door and the driver
shops. context such as small others by wearing a mask
environments, catching whenever out of one’s Change agents to
taxis and daily living. home. be equipped with
People are being asked The message is for all the necessary PPEs
to deconstruct the lives public transport to such as masks,
they are accustomed to disinfect their modes of hand sanitizers,
in order to break the transport and ensure the soap
chain of transmission. use of masks and social
distancing inside the taxis
and at taxi ranks. Enabling
messages about what you
4What the findings tell us Data to action Health promotion Municipal/Ward
strategy level intervention
can do rather than what
you cannot do.
13% of people reported Impoverished and We need to build a social Community hub
that their chronic remote communities compact to create a new points to be located
medication was continue to face barriers model between health in all wards in the
inaccessible during to health care access. care system and the local country, these
lockdown, with over Those people who are community at municipal community hubs
20% of people from struggling to access level. will work closely
informal settlements chronic medication will The message is to take the with local clinics
and rural/ traditional also struggle to access medicines to the home. and deliver chronic
areas reporting the services related to Learn from the Cuban medicines by
same. COVID-19. primary health care means of using
It is important to relook experience taxi’s bicycles and
at primary health care at more
a municipal ward level
and to re-examine the
role of community health
workers, family
caregivers and youth in
that community.
Between 45% and 63% Structure the package The message is that the The change agents
of people reported that and expand the reach of government and society will work closely
the lock down would the government’s as a whole acknowledges with government
make it difficult to pay economic and social that some communities especially at
bills, debts, earn relief programmes. are struggling and people municipal level to
income, feed their This should be done in a may have no money to ensure that
families and keep their way that every person buy food financial aid / food
jobs. feels that they are being Create a social compact parcels/vouchers
Additionally, 24% of taken care of. with communities and the are distributed in
people reported that There needs to be public and private sector, their communities
they had no money for accountability at all to ensure sustainable via the community
food. levels with immediate financial and social relief. hub point
consequences for This should include
violations. promoting
intergenerational
cohesion, sustainable
food banks
Cigarettes (12%) were One in five people in This highlights the need The community
more accessible than South Africa currently for tobacco control change agents will
alcohol (3%) during smoke, and about one in interventions to prevent work closely with
lockdown. ten smokers were able to illicit trade and smuggling. communities on
A quarter of people access cigarettes during The results also call for whistle blowing on
from informal lockdown. better regulation of illegal trade
settlements were able The continued access to tobacco sales in informal
cigarettes in informal markets.
5What the findings tell us Data to action Health promotion Municipal/Ward
strategy level intervention
to buy cigarettes during settlements could imply The message is that South There will be a
lockdown. informal trade. Africans need to be made cadre of health
Being a smoker doubles aware of the serious risks promotion activists
the risk of dying or that smoking expose working with
having disease in them to, should communities on
coronavirus patients educating
Smokers are more likely communities on
to end up in hospital and the risk of
require ventilators and cigarettes and
our health system would alcohol. This must
therefore be start at primary
overburdened. school level –
Financial support could Grade 7
be redirected to tobacco
purchases
The majority of people The speedy introduction Provide clear guidance Appoint
were not involved with of regulations without and support to people so community liaison
law enforcement at all guidance and support that they are able to staff at police
15% of people were sets people up for failure adhere to regulations stations to assist
treated badly/roughly Need to be sensitive to Acknowledge that it is with guidelines and
the major disruption to difficult for people to support on
people’s lives make these major regulations to
In order to ensure that changes willingly in order reduce the
the law is enforced, they to protect their families workload on police
play multiple roles and communities staff
(education and Law enforcement should
information, be provided with clear
enforcement laws, social guidelines and support to
support) enable them to deal with
intentional violators and
risk takers
5.2 Training of Behaviour change agents
A body of evidence from health promotion, intervention mapping and behaviour change theories suggests
that the internship programme could make a difference to how communities respond to health, social
and developmental challenges and threats.
Behaviour change agents will be trained in theories of behaviour and behaviour change, which will include
the following curriculum:
a) The philosophy of the Ottawa Charter
b) The Health Belief Model (HBM)
c) Social Cognitive Theory (SCT)
d) Self-determination Theory
e) Future Goal Orientation Theory
6f) The Social Ecological Model
g) Cultural and linguistic appropriateness and resilience
Figure 2: Planning and Evaluation model
PLANNING QUESTIONS DEVELOPMENT QUESTIONS EVALUATION QUESTIONS
Which health problem and Is there enough information Has the implementation been carried
how serious is the health, to develop an intervention? out as expected?
social or developmental
problem?
Which health related and Is a new intervention going Has the intervention been received as
social behaviours are involved? to be developed? planned?
Are these behaviours Is an existing intervention Have the determinants of the
changeable? going to be adapted? behaviour changed?
What are the psychosocial, Has the intervention been Has the behaviour changed?
environmental, economic, pretested?
cultural and gender related How can the intervention be
determinants of these implemented?
behaviours?
Which interventions might Are the people who will Has the problem been reduced
change the behaviours? conduct the intervention
trained to do so?
Figure 3: Planning, development and evaluation questions
5.3 Adaptation of the Cuban healthcare model-interns will be based within communities
The Cuban health model has created a community-based teaching method rather than a typical hospital-
based teaching method. Primary care, being the first level of contact to a patient, is closely located to the
patient's home and work. Here, students are exposed to medicine and the social, economic, and political
factors that influence health. At primary care facilities, ethics and values are a taught as a large part of the
Cuban healthcare system alongside science and technology. Students graduate capable of resolving health
7issues and knowing when to report to a person higher in the healthcare pyramid. Students graduate with
a commitment to providing and preserving quality and equity within healthcare for their communities.
South Africa has a proud history in activism, and these interns would be activists for health promotion,
prevention of COVID-19 infection, social upliftment, sport and physical activity, entrepreneurship and
more.
5.4 Training of other cadres of graduates
One hundred graduates who have qualifications in public administration, law, finance and human
resources will contribute to the framework for support of project work happening across all nine
provinces. They will work closely with structures within the Human Sciences Research Council to support
work being undertaken by behaviour change agents and community research assistants.
6. Budget
The budget will be determined by the allocation of funds received by the Department of Higher Education
and Training according to their budget envelope allocation.
7. References
Statistics South Africa. 2019. Quarterly Labour Force Survey: Quarter 3. Pretoria: Statistics South Africa.
Retrieved from: http://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/P0211/P02113rdQuarter2019.pdf
Keck, C. William; Reed, Gail A. (2012). "The curious case of Cuba". American Journal of Public Health. 102
(8): e13-22. doi:10.2105/ajph.2012.300822. PMC 3464859. PMID 22698011.
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