Government is stepping up efforts to expand employment opportunities for persons with disabilities, with public institutions and the private sector urged to accelerate employment equity targets and create more inclusive workplaces.
Minister in the Presidency for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, Sindisiwe Chikunga, made the call during the official launch of the South African Revenue Service (SARS) Deaf Accessibility and Cohort Programme in Pretoria on Friday.
Chikunga commended SARS for introducing practical measures to improve communication access, skills development, and service delivery for deaf people.
She said the initiative demonstrates how inclusion can be translated from principle into practice through employment, skills development, accessible communication, and institutional capability.
The Minister noted that disability inclusion has been, and continues to be a constitutional imperative, supported by South Africa's legislative and international commitments, including the Constitution, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the African Disability Protocol.
She commended SARS for choosing to launch the initiative during Disability Rights Awareness Month (DRAM), observed from 3 November to 3 December. The observance will culminate on 3 December, when South Africa joins the international community in commemorating the International Day of Persons with Disabilities.
READ | Chikunga calls for stronger partnerships to advance disability rights
This year’s DRAM is taking place under the theme: “Creating Strategic Multi-Sectoral Partnerships for a Disability-Inclusive Society.”
Chikunga said partnerships between government, the private sector and civil society are essential to removing barriers that prevent persons with disabilities from participating fully in social and economic life.
She emphasised that inclusive workplaces must be supported by an inclusive education system, warning that barriers in schools often carry through into the workplace.
These include inaccessible school infrastructure, inadequate assistive devices, a shortage of qualified South African Sign Language teachers and interpreters, as well as insufficient teacher training to support learners with disabilities.
The Minister also highlighted the potential of technology, including artificial intelligence, automated captioning, sign language recognition, and speech-to-text tools, to improve access to education and employment.
However, she warned that deliberate investment in devices, connectivity and training is necessary to ensure that these technologies benefit learners across all communities, rather than only those with access to resources.
Collaboration and partnerships
Chikunga proposed several areas of collaboration between her department and SARS, including developing a dedicated employment stream for persons with disabilities that can build on the experience of the Deaf Accessibility and Cohort Programme.
She also called for partnerships between special schools and State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs), through which companies can use their Corporate Social Investment (CSI) budgets to address infrastructure and educational needs at special schools.
“As part of this effort, we hope to bring together the CEOs of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) , Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs), and industry associations to commit a percentage of their Corporate Social Investment budgets towards turning around the state of special schools and improving the prospects of youth with disabilities.
“SARS, while not strictly an SOE in the conventional sense, carries significant convening power across the public finance ecosystem. Let us also work together to make this project a reality,” the Minister said.
Employment equity
On employment equity, Chikunga said the National Development Plan had set a target of 7% representation of persons with disabilities by 2030.
Cabinet has approved an annual increase of one percentage point in employment equity representation, with a target of 5% for the 2026/27 financial year.
She said the department is leading by example, having achieved 5.56% representation.
Chikunga warned that government departments and private sector organisations can no longer afford to treat employment equity as a compliance exercise.
“Those who continue to pay lip service to employment equity will be named, and they will be shamed,” she said.
She added that her department is working with organisations representing persons with disabilities to develop a credible database to help government departments and public entities identify and recruit suitably qualified candidates.
The Minister further encouraged government departments, the private sector and society to procure goods and services from Supported Employment Enterprises, which are state-owned companies that provide employment opportunities for persons with disabilities.
She spoke under the theme: “Every Hand has a Voice – Shaping an Inclusive Future.”– SAnews.gov.za
