The Social Employment Fund (SEF) was established by the Presidential Employment Stimulus (PES) as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The SEF is creating 55,000 temporary jobs for unemployed youth throughout South Africa through 35 existing civil society organisations.

Working across several thematic areas, the SEF has a 'work for the common good' ethos, providing individuals with a stipend while learning valuable work skills, better equipping them for future work opportunities, contributing to community upliftment at the same time.