NYDA hauled over the coals for irregular expenditure, travel spend and superficial events

The National Youth Development Agency was hauled over the coals during a parliamentary portfolio committee meeting on Tuesday when it presented an annual report that revealed over R71m in irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure.

First, committee chairperson Liezl van der Merwe criticised the timing of the tabling of the report, before reprimanding the agency for its shortcomings.

“We meet today to receive the annual report of the NYDA for the year 2024/25 which was tabled to parliament on January 14, a number of months late,” she said.

The deadline to submit annual reports was September 30 2025.

Van der Merwe said it was distressing that an entity that previously had nine clean audits, was unable to achieve that once more.

She said it was a cause of discomfort that the committee’s prior support for the NYDA board when it was appointment seems to have resulted in disappointment.

“We gave you simple marching orders, we said don’t be politicians, don’t spend excessive amounts of taxpayer (money) on travel and don’t spend too much time on events. We said be practical and focused with your interventions,” she said.

“We said, spend every cent advancing the interests of young people across the length and breadth of our country. However, disappointingly, it looks like our support has been taken for granted and it looks like our advice and guidance was not taken on board.”

Van de Merwe said she had received a number of complaints from aggrieved young South Africans querying the participation of the NYDA in the ANC’s January 8 activities.

“Moreover, the negative media publicity that the entity is attracting is also a cause for concern. In particular, as it pertains to the chairperson’s travel, which has been flagged by the AG and the allegations that you mistreated persons with disabilities at the January 8 activities.”

The chairperson stated that the committee required a clarification about all the issues that have cast a dark cloud over the functioning of the current board.

“The NYDA Act is quite clear that board members must have no conflict of interest, with at least one of the seven board members now elected to hold public office, after their appointment. It raises questions as to how they will comply with these provisions while also acting without fear, favour or prejudice.”

Van der Merwe pleaded with the board to self-introspect as the committee would not tolerate underperformance.

“A compromised and ineffective NYDA is not what we signed up for. We will not accept it, and we hope that we will be frank and honest with each other this morning to find answers to some of the questions that the honourable members might have.”

Minister in the presidency for women, youth and people with disabilities Sindisiwe Chikunga sought to defend the controversial R1m New York junket, saying that it took place under her watch.

“The NYDA travelling to New York both in March last year and in September, it was per the invitation of the minister. It was relevant for them to be part of the minister’s delegation. It was not that the NYDA or the chairperson of the board on her own decided to travel to New York, but it was per the invitation of the minister. It was at my invitation because the minister was also invited by the president. The matters pertaining in the main for that UNGA to women and the NYDA is also responsible for young women.

“The travelling, the R1m is against the US dollar. When you leave South Africa and book any of the flights, you don’t pay with the rand you pay in another currency. The booking happened at the time of such a big conference, the prices get inflated and you have no control over that. Sometimes a standard room will cost R40,000 per night, it’s either you book or you don’t book. There is no way the chairperson would have been booked in a five star hotel with the delegation that was there, that would have actually escalated not to just a million but even R3m.

Chikunga defended the board, saying its mandate to source opportunities for young people should not be restricted to the borders of the country.

“We had meetings with ministers and other delegations from other countries, this is what makes this worth attending. I don’t think that the NYDA will look for opportunities within the country, they have a responsibility to also seek opportunities on the continent and around the world.

“That is why we meet with a plethora of people so that we get back and account that this is what we are pursuing. It cannot be seen as a waste. I don’t believe it is fair to say they were there just to waste South Africa’s money.”

While Van der Merwe appreciated Chikunga’s clarification, she said the question was not the rand/dollar spend, but the probe into why the NYDA board chairperson had to tag along with three staff members.

EFF MP Sihle Lonzi echoed Van der Merwe’s remarks, saying that the NYDA’s actions, particularly on the financial front, were avoidable.

“It is not true that there is no fruitless and wasteful expenditure in the NYDA. The AG came before us and spoke of R71m which they have flagged, that the NYDA is opposing that flagging does not mean that it falls off.

Lonzi questioned why Chikunga would defend the indefensible, arguing that she should be calling out the board for its priorities.

“The explanation simply does not stand, it is indefensible. In fact, we expect the minister to call out the NYDA and say these are not the things that you should be focusing on.

Lonzi rejected the claims of opportunities secured in New York as a smokescreen, claiming that many of these partnerships never come to fruition.

“What are the timelines of these so-called MOUs that are being entered into? We have heard of these partnerships before, this is not the first board that we are interacting with. There is always talk of these partnerships and MOUs and those things never materialise.”

He further criticised the spending patterns of the board which, according to the AG report, has spent R1.4m on an NSFAS outreach, R12m on a pre-SONA youth engagement.

“I do so many NSFAS outreach programmes and I don’t even spend R5,000. I take my laptops, EFF volunteers under a gazebo and we help high school learners and we assist them to apply. Giving people information costs the NYDA R1.4m?

“I can even send pictures from that programme, there were hardly people in that particular venue. In fact, President Cyril Ramaphosa did not even attend that programme. One would ask the question, what would the R1.2m be for in that programme?”

Lonzi said it was regretful that the new board seemed to repeat the mistakes of the old guard, by allowing political interference to cloud its work, causing it to seem partisan.

The board is expected to return to parliament to account on all outstanding questions in a physical sitting in April.

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