The much-anticipated job summit will not bear fruit because  government has failed to address all affected stakeholders ahead of its commencement.

This is according to Muziwakhe Sigudla, executive director of the Southern African Youth Movement, a non-profit organisation that is an accredited training and applied research resource and information provider.

We are not that much hopeful about the outcome of this summit because we feel that we should have had preparatory meetings between government, business, labour and the community," said Sigudla.

He told SowetanLIVE that the economy is not growing the way it's supposed to be.

"So how do you then talk about job creation without looking at the overall structure of the economy? This summit gives us little hope," said Sigudla.  

"A meeting of this nature needed much more deeper engagement, such as looking at the role the social sector plays in terms of job creation. Government is constrained and we feel that the social sector can play [a role] but we find ourselves trying to redefine the role of the NGO sector in service delivery and job creation," he added.

The two-day job summit, which will bring government, business, labour and other stakeholders together, aims to address the country's unemployment rate, which currently sits at 27.2%.

The event is convened by the National Economic Development & Labour Council (Nedlac) in Midrand.

President Cyril Ramaphosa first raised the possibility of a job summit during his first State of the Nation Address in February and the aim remains for organisations to come together and find solutions to increase economic growth and create jobs.

Ramaphosa is expected to deliver the key note address later this afternoon.