South Africa to Start $135 Million Fund to Tackle Unemployment

South Africa will on Friday start offering loans from a 2.5 billion rand ($135 million) Youth Fund aimed at supporting small businesses, part of a push by the government to tackle one of the world’s highest unemployment rates.

Nearly half of South Africans between 15 years to 34 years are unemployed, according to Statistics South Africa. The fund aims to address this by supporting high-potential small and medium enterprises, National Youth Development Agency Deputy Chairperson Bonga Makhanya said in an interview.