The government is reviewing its recruitment regulations for entry-level posts in the public service to allow for the hiring of new employees without prior experience.

Public service and administration minister Ayanda Dlodlo announced the steps taken, with the aim of addressing the country's high youth unemployment problem, at a briefing in Pretoria yesterday.

More than 30% of SA's youth are unemployed, with many, including new graduates, unable to access the job market due to a lack of experience. The minister also launched an e-recruitment system, bringing to life the plans she had to digitise the public service when she took over the portfolio.

"It is indisputable that the current recruitment processes are cumbersome for job-seekers and government departments have not moved or evolved with the changing technological advancements.

She explained: "For job seekers, the new e-recruitment system will be beneficial because it is web-based and accessible from different locations for all job-seekers who submit applications to a centralised database."

The system will also introduce a paperless administration across the public service, including the digitisation of the Z83 form, to ease the process of applying for jobs which traditionally required applicants to submit the physical application.

She said the system will "alleviate the burden on our youth when applying for jobs in the public service".

The e-recruitment system will be phased in at the departments of labour, higher education and training, public service and administration, the national school of government, centre for public service innovation, and the office of the public service commission.