The Jobs Fund’s plans to reduce the scourge of unemployment in SA is the focus in this edition of the Business Day Spotlight.
Host Mudiwa Gavaza is joined by Najwah Allie-Edries, head of the Jobs Fund.
Established in 2011, the Jobs Fund is an initiative of the National Treasury aimed at addressing the challenge of unemployment in South Africa.
Allie-Edries says it was the first such fund. Over the past decade, it has deployed R7.6bn in public capital and mobilised an additional R15.5bn in matched funding.
It had supported the creation of more than 340,000 jobs and internships by September 2025.
Allie-Edries outlines how structured public-private collaboration can derisk investment and crowd in capital for job creation.
She also details how matched funding strengthens governance, improves project delivery and reframes public capital as a signal of confidence rather than a subsidy.
Through the discussion, Allie-Edries highlights the functions of the Jobs Fund; the concept of matched funding; the importance of private and public sector players working together; and examples of projects done by the fund.
An example of a partnership is with fintech company A2Pay, which has supported spaza shop operators with point-of-sale technology, creating more than 14,000 jobs while enabling small retailers to formalise and scale their operations.
Join the discussion:
Producer: Demi Buzo
Business Day Spotlight is an Arena Podcasts Production.
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