More Jozi@Work packages

17 September 2015

 

Jozi@Work, the City of Johannesburg’s R3-billion mass empowerment and job creation programme, is in full swing, with several new work packages being offered to co-operatives and small businesses in Region D this week.

 

The programme is an initiative of Executive Mayor Councillor Parks Tau aimed at helping to tackle poverty, unemployment and inequality in Johannesburg. The work packages announced this week have a combined value running into several tens of thousands of rands.

 

The packages – work previously done by established businesses contracted to the City – were rolled out to Region D areas such as Naledi, Dlamini, Pimville, Orlando East, Noordgesig, Diepkloof, Dobsonville and Meadowlands.

 

The packages included repairs and maintenance work at the Emdeni Hall and two libraries in Protea North; cleaning of roof and gutters at Chiawelo Library; similar work at Phiri Library; maintenance and construction work at Klipspruit West Library; and repairs, maintenance, painting and general work at Pimville Library.

 

Regional Director Pat Lephunya was one of the people who attended the announcement of the new packages at Pimville Library earlier in the week. Lephunya said it was gratifying to see so many local entrepreneurs and members of co-operatives in attendance.

 

“It is a new way of doing business with our communities and the City aims to empower many people,” he said.

 

Region D Jozi@Work Coordinator Nomvula Dambe said the new set of work packages had been designed in such a way that the cake was spread evenly across the region to empower as many people as possible. Entrepreneurs were urged to complete and submit their expressions of interest forms for work packages in their wards as soon as possible.

 

City officials said it was crucial for co-operatives and small businesses to understand how their submissions were scored. They said 20 points were allocated for localisation, 10 for opportunity creation, 10 for the company’s strategy to mobilise communities around the work package and another 10 for a company with all its members on social grants or on the City’s Extended Social Package (ESP), or five if only some, not all, are on social grants or on the ESP.

 

The remaining 50 points are allocated based on functionality. This includes understanding of the work package being applied for, skills and experience. The officials stressed that ward councillors had no say in the awarding of work packages.

 

“The awarding of Jozi@Work packages rests with the steering committee in which ward councillors play no part,” said one of the facilitators.