Thembisa Shologu
The Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) continues to change the lives of unemployed residents through the iCrush NoLova Jobs and Skills Programme one opportunity at a time.
The programme is an extension of Nasi iSpani that is aimed at tackling the province’s unemployment challenges by offering skills development, training, and meaningful job opportunities. It was launched on 6 April 2024 in partnership with the Department of Labour and Employment and the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF).
Walk-in registrations were carried out from 13-14 April 2024 across Gauteng and up to 500 000 people of all ages applied.
On Wednesday, 15 May 2024 the first group of beneficiaries who successfully matched for jobs and training in agriculture, customer service, construction, engineering, wholesale and retail, furniture manufacturing, and entrepreneurial skills, amongst others gathered at the Rhema Bible Church in Randburg to receive appointment letters.
UIF Commissioner, Teboho Maruping said the letters being issued meant people were going to get training for employment into employment. Adding that these were tangible job opportunities as they were given to real people known in communities.
“These jobs are real even the service providers that are offering these jobs, you see them. My plea is, please do not get us to waste government money, there are many people out there who need every cent.
“Government will continue coming with interventions. The economy cannot grow . You need to get into this programme, finish it and make sure you go to the next level and the level after so that the economy can grow and change the generation after you. Keep going and stay the course.
“Get into this programme and finish what you started. You get into a programme, you get a stipend of R2000, and someone offers you R50 more you leave that mentality needs to stop,” said Maruping.
Premier Panyaza Lesufi urged beneficiaries not to disappoint government and everyone involved in the programme.
Premier Lesufi reminded applicants that there were many who were still waiting for SMSes that would change their lives for the better.
“You are the first group of 500 000 people we are going to call, you are the luckiest. There are some people who are charging their phones while under the pillow, waiting for an SMS.
“You got your SMS, and that SMS is nothing else but a path to a better life. That SMS is nothing but a confirmation that your life has changed for the better, nothing else but a confirmation that we have assigned you to somebody that is going to train you and while you are still being trained you are going to get a stipend and that is the part that excites me,” said Lesufi.
He said he was encouraged to continue working hard to reclaim missed opportunities preparing for the fifth industrial revolution and to ensure that those were relevant opportunities of a lifetime.
“We are doing this because we know a future Gauteng is a Gauteng that will create permanent opportunities for you as citizens and we are of the view that we need to depart from the past.
“We might have missed great opportunities then, but we are reclaiming them because the fifth industrial revolution is giving us an opportunity to cover, an opportunity to catch up, to ensure that we are at the same par with the world, and we can move together with the world,” said the premier.
Linda Khumalo from SADICO said that they were running a programme called digital exponential for 18-50 age groups.
The programme starts from 1 June 2024 offering a course on how to fix cellphone, solar panels installations, how to build a computer and fix them, digital migration and how to build websites.
“We are revolutionising how we approach work, we say let us create jobs instead of looking for jobs and then we will change gears and then take them to the fourth industrial revolution which includes internet, artificial intelligence, nano technology and block chain which is an engine of technology that is used for crypto currency and cyber security amongst other. In all of that they learn a skill and they implement.
“So, these learning clubs are going to be cooperatives, they will be creating job opportunities. We are going to create a very powerful energy industry. In Gauteng alone, we had about 18 000 applicants we are starting a revolutionary movement within the digital industry,” said Khumalo.
SOURCED FROM THE GPG WEBSITE.
