Statement by the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) Board Chairperson Mr Sifiso Mtsweni during the press conference on the resignation of Chief Executive Officer, Mr Khathu Ramukumba
Members of the NYDA Board,
NYDA Executive Members and Senior Managers,
Members of the media,
Good afternoon,
The National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) Board has received and sadly accepted the resignation of its Chief Executive Officer, Mr Khathutshelo Ramukumba with his last day with the Agency being Tuesday 31 October 2017. Ever since May this year, after the appointment of the NYDA Board by His Excellency President Zuma, Mr Ramukumba approached us and expressed his desire to spread his wings beyond the confines of the agency. Mr Ramukumba has been with the NYDA for a period of 6 and a half years. The Board persuaded Mr Ramukumba to stay on at least up until the Board has found its footing in the agency and in that regard, we persuaded him to consider extending his stay by a period not less than 6 months and preferably 12 months. We are delighted that Mr Ramukumba accepted our request and has extended his stay in the agency till this period.
The NYDA Board wishes to express our sincerest gratitude and appreciation to Mr Ramukumba for his selfless and tireless contribution towards youth development. Under his leadership at the helm of the administration, the organization has moved from strength to strength, way beyond expectations.
Mr Ramukumba is a seasoned public servant having served in government entities for a period of 14 years. His career in public services commenced at the Auditor General, no wonder he understood the imperatives of governance and fiscal control. He later joined the Rand Water Group in various roles that include being a Senior Internal Auditor, Audit Manager and later Group Audit. His passion for the youth saw him join the NYDA as the Chief Financial Officer in May 2011 and was later appointed to the position of Chief Executive Officer of the NYDA in May 2014, after having acted in this position for four months.
He has played a crucial role in making sure that the governance and financial management principles are cascaded down by being part and serving local and district municipalities as follows:
- Chairperson of the Audit Committee for the Sekhukhune District Municipality.
- Audit Committee of the Mpumalanga Provincial Legislature, and
- Board and Audit Committee member of the Youth Development Institute of South Africa (YDISA).
- He was also recently appointed as a member of the Cluster Audit Committee of the Limpopo Provincial Treasury responsible for these three provincial departments: Department of Economic Development, Department of Transport and Department of Agriculture.
- He has also represented the Auditor General in Audit Steering Committees for the following clients: The Public Protector; the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development; and the National Prosecuting Authority.
In terms of his leadership within the NYDA, Mr Ramukumba has overseen the achievement of three successive clean audits; achievements of 93%, 96% and 100% of Key Performance Indicators (KPI) for three years in a row; the restructuring of the NYDA; and relocation of the NYDA head office in a bid to reduce overheads.
During his tenure, we take pride in his selfless acts of generosity and kindness. As a consequence of the CEO’s enabler’s fund, a positive impact in the lives of many young black children, parents and community members has brought a beam of light and decreased the burden of financial exclusion. Mr Ramukumba’s personal contribution to support children from poor and child headed households through the provision of school uniforms, shoes and sanitary towels contributed in the fight against a massive social challenge.
As the current Board of Directors we are indebted to values of sacrifice epitomised by Mr Ramukumba. We have no doubt that he will certainly do well in his future endeavours and we wish him nothing but the best. As this Board we will continue to tap into his wisdom and experience as and when it is required but we most certainly wish him well as he pursues his personal business journey.
In this regard, the Board of the National Youth Development Agency hereby announces the appointment of Mr Waseem Carrim as Acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) effective from the 1st of November 2017. In this period, the Board will initiate a process to appoint a permanent Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
The appointment of Mr Carrim is in line with our objective of ensuring stability in this transitional period. Mr Carrim has been with the organization for a few years, having served as a Senior Manager in Finance and subsequently as Chief Financial Officer for the organization. Mr Carrim, who is a qualified Chartered Accountant, can be credited for ensuring that finances of the organization are intact which has led to our clean audits and governance that the organization has been experiencing in the past few years. The Board has full confidence in the ability of Mr Carrim to carry the organization as head of the administration up until a time we have appointed a permanent CEO.
We congratulate Mr Carrim and wish him well on this journey, we call on all members of the staff to offer full support to Mr Carrim in this period. The Board will work closely with the Executive Management to ensure a smooth and efficient transitional period.
We are looking forward to working with Mr Carrim during his tenure as the Acting CEO to roll out more initiatives that will seek to impact and the change the lives of young people in South Africa.
We remain committed to servicing the youth and making the NYDA accessible to all the youth of South Africa.
