Joburg Water hands 30 youths key to employment

20 April 2017

 

Johannesburg Water, the City of Johannesburg’s water and sanitation entity, has provided 30 unemployed youths with an opportunity to gain skills in the sector in which it operates through its Youth Development Learnership programme.

 

The learnership, which started at the beginning of April and will run for a year, is funded by the Local Government Sector Education and Training Authority (LGSETA). Through the initiative, Johannesburg Water seeks to help young people acquire experience in the water and sanitation arena and gain knowledge on the various career options available at the entity in particular.

The learnership, which is both theoretical and practical, is in line with the City’s objective of reducing unemployment in Johannesburg by at least 6% by 2021. The 30 beneficiaries are relatives of low-level employees of Joburg Water. The learners have all been enrolled for a Project Management NQF Level 4 course.

During an induction ceremony at the Swiss House in Johannesburg on Wednesday April 19, Johannesburg Water Senior Manager Fatima Chikana said it was encouraging to see there were young people who were committed to undergoing a project management learnership.

“The learnership is a starting point to the world of public management. You will go out there to experience first-hand what Johannesburg Water is all about,” said Chikana.

She said the learners would be placed on different sites within the entity.  “When you get on site, you are there to learn and grasp as much as you can,” said Chikana.

Training and Development Manager Tommy Salem advised the learners to make good use of the opportunity and engage their assigned mentors as much as they could. “There is a need to empower young people. This learnership programme gives you the opportunity to obtain a qualification and get ahead in life,” said Salem.

One of the beneficiaries of the programme is 25-year-old Lungiswa Semenya of Meadowlands, Soweto. A Public Management graduate, Semenya said the programme gave her a platform to launch her career in the sector.

“A family member told me about this programme and I applied because I am interested in getting more experience,” said Semenya.

She said the programme would enable her to back up her qualifications and provide her with the opportunity to build networks with fellow learners. “This is a good place for me to build contacts and learn from the best. At the end of 12 months I’ll get a qualification from this prominent entity,” said Semenya.

She said she was particularly interested in the water purification space.

Joburg Water Media Liaison Officer Eleanor Mavimbela said next month would mark the start of another youth development programme. She said 60 youths will undergo Occupational Certificate Plumbing NQF 4 and Water and Waste Water Process Control NQF 3 courses.