SANDF reserves’ youth recruitment plan shot down by defence committee members

2026-03-20 - 13:40

The reserve force of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) needs fresh blood, but recruitment remains stagnant. An executive from the SANDF’s Reserve Force Council (RFC) on Friday gave a presentation to the Select Committee on Defence, proposing a youth recruitment plan. RFC members envisioned a youthful reserve force that received basic military training, coupled with skills development over a multi-year period. The RFC believed that this pathway would create young South Africans of character; however, a committee member stated that it strayed from the force’s primary role to supplement SANDF numbers in times of crisis. Unlocking SA’s ‘youth vitality’ Retired Major General Gordon Yekelo was adamant that the reserve force had the power to groom future generations. “We believe that the most realistic way forward is only realisable when we work within the framework we are going to propose,” Yekelo told the committee. The SANDF reserves have traditionally been a volunteer force comprising former soldiers, but Air Force Major Herrick Richards stated a focus on the youth would be “a beacon” of the RFC’s current term of office. “This council wishes to travel another road with an all-of-government approach, where we say, let’s harness South Africa’s youth vitality, and to advocate for the reform of the system so that we can do good in society,” said Richards. He said a reimagining of the reserves’ military capability was possible, one where their relevance and impact within communities could be redefined. He explained that using the reserve force to train the youth would create “responsible citizens” and a positive societal return on investment. The crux of the plan relies on a paid, three-year “incubation” programme for youth recruits, who would receive job experience and training, enabling them to become functional members of society with a volunteer military mindset. “Not all of them will fight for South Africa, not all of them will be uniquely designed for military application, but most will help their community and the state,” said Richards. Disguised youth employment The Freedom Front Plus’ Tammy Breedt pointed out that a similar plan existed in the National Rural Youth Service Corps, a two-year skills development programme for under-35s run by the Department of Land Reform. The DA’s Chris Hattingh noted the absence of any mention of the key defence policy documents from 1996, 1998 or 2015. Hattingh called it a “brave” presentation, taking on youth unemployment and addressing an ageing reserve force. However, he highlighted that it was not a defence proposal but a youth employment programme delivered through the military. “It presents a selective reading of defence policy that risks misrepresenting how the SANDF is to be structured and employed. “The defence reviews are not missing from this proposal or from the presentation; it is actually avoided because the defence reviews contradict what is on the table here. “Yes, something like this should be done, but I don’t believe the SANDF is the right tool for that. It belongs somewhere else,” said Hattingh. Mending the social fabric Committee chair Malusi Gigaba agreed that such presentations should have the tone of a defence document and not a youth empowerment pitch. Gigaba suggested the council failed to consider the core purpose of soldier recruitment, rather than issuing an open call to youth seeking opportunities. “You’re not just recruiting young people to get them employment. You do not want members of the reserve force, when they are deployed, to start asking you questions about my right this, my union that. “At the heart of you joining the reserve force is the fact that you might be called upon to take up arms. That discipline and that philosophy has to underpin what appears in this document,” said Gigaba. Yekelo defended the plan, arguing that skills development with a military angle would have long-term benefits. He explained that there were “two streams” that would work simultaneously to replenish reserve force members and mend a “breakdown in the social fabric” in disadvantaged areas. “We have missed the basics, the foundational aspect, which is how defence relates to society and how defence relates to the economy. “What we are trying to propose here is that we must have a system, which, going forward, the reserves that we have are catered for; where they will not just be trained militarily and thrown into the street,” Yekelo stated. NOW READ: Force, lethargy and ‘common enemy’: Committee chairs on SANDF deployment