What's the point of NYDA?

It's not surprising that Newcastle township shopping centre's were looted, especially by the youth of this town. The youth has lost all hope for a better a life & institutions like NYDA Newcastle are a contributing cause.

NYDA Newcastle specializes in failing the youth of this town. I bet if a thorough investigation into their yearly targets was conducted, surely this branch would come up short.

In October 2020, I was part of the NYDA training, where at least 10 or more youths were also participating. The training was held in a boardroom with no ventilation at the height of the covid 19 pandemic.

After the week long training, we were given an opportunity to make presentations on our businesses & why we were applying for funding. After a few days, I went to collect my training certificate & was given an application form for funding for my Digital Media business.

I filled in the form, updated my business plan, acquired relevant quotations for all the equipment & business premises that I had wanted for my business, Digital Insider Online Media. When I submitted my application, I was told by the Business Advisor, Ziyanda Mntuyedwa that my application couldn't be processed until I provided them with a lease agreement.

So after a lot of back & forth trying to find a business premises that would be suitable for my business & also affordable, I finally found the perfect location. This was in December 2020. Ziyanda Mntuyedwa told me that my application would have to pass through a committee before any funding approvals would be made.

Because of the delay, the 1st location fell through in January 2021 & I had to undertake the task of going around town searching for another location, at this point my quotations for equipment had lapsed because of the 14 day validity period.

I had to start over, with the little I had for transport & printing, re-acquiring updated quotes & a lease agreement. I finally found a property in March 2021 which was approved by the Business Advisor, Ziyanda as suitable. Thereafter I waited for feedback until May. During that period I had to continuously beg Ziyanda for any level of feedback regarding my application, requests which she often ignored until I showed up physically at the NYDA offices.

Things got so bad that I went into a deep depression. My mother undertook to go & speak to the Branch Manager, Senamile Dube. Senamile told my mom that I should come see her myself.

So I went to see Senamile Dube in May at their offices where she treated me like trash that had blew into her office with the wind. She proceeded to talk down to me, thereafter handed me a typed letter stating that my application was rejected as I failed to present why I needed funding & that I didn't even have a letter of intention from any potential clients. Ziyanda Mntuyedwa had made absolutely no mention of a letter of intent in all the months i had been dealing with her leading up to the rejection. This was strange to me because in my business plan was a clear outline of the personnel I needed to procure for certain services & the equipment that would be needed. My business was registered in 2016 & has had clients that I have worked with. In my business plan it clearly provided the names of the businesses & the web & branding services I had provided them. She didn't even care that I had been made to sign a contractually binding lease agreement.

The funny part is that Senamile Dube said that the delay in my application reaching their board was due to under staffing, yet she said my business didn't need any staff or all quoted equipment because I could work in my living room with a laptop. They sit at the NYDA with fully equipped offices & multiple staff members yet struggle to fulfill their duties in a timely fashion yet she expected me to run my business from a livingroom at home, fulfill the tasks of a graphic designer, secretary, sales lady & digital strategist, all by myself. The hypocrisy of it all!!

The most upsetting part is that I wasn't even given an opportunity to get a letter of intent from potential clients or even existing ones because Senamile Dube had already decided to reject my application.

My business isn't a new business & has had paying clients, I am educated & skilled with years of experience in the field I wanted to venture in business. Yet that wasn't enough.

It was a slap in the face when Senamile Dube treated me in that manner when all I needed was help getting my business off the ground, especially because this happened in May when the NYDA was commemorating Mental health awareness. This whole process caused me & my family so much stress & depression that I didn't think I would be able to start over.

They knew that in July 2021 I would be turning 35 years old and they made sure they delayed my application until the last months.

I believe NYDA Newcastle is more invested in finding reasons to not fund applicants instead of considering all valid reasons why applicants should receive funding & business assistance.

In my training class there were youths who wanted to open internet cafes, car wash, recording studio and buy equipment for construction work. Some of these participants had existing clients & portfolios of work they could show yet they weren't even offered the application for funding documents. Their portfolios & existing clients wasn't enough for them to get assistance or funding.

It's like the NYDA Newcastle shifts the goal post as & how they please just to make sure that we don't get access to funding.

NYDA CEO should stop making tv interviews claiming that the NYDA is committed to combating high youth unemployment in the country when their branches are failing us intentionally.