Day: April 15, 2019

The Moses Kotane Skills Centre in association with The Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) and the Department of Infrastructure Development (DID), is proud to announce that 2 900 EPWP beneficiaries have received technical skills training since its inception in July 2018. The initiative aims to provide training to 3 200 participants in 2019.

The Moses Kotane Skills Centre, which was initiated by MEC Jacob Mamabolo from Gauteng Department of Infrastructure Development, partnered with the University of Johannesburg and Resolution Circle, the implementation partner, to provide skills training across seven different tracks, namely: mechanical, electrical, automation, electronics, carpentry, building and fitting and turning.

“We are in the midst of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4.0 IR) which will introduce new technologies and new opportunities the South African workforce,” said Corrie Smit, Project Manager at Resolution Circle. While there is uncertainty about how 4.0 IR will evolve, there is agreement that there is a need to understand these sophisticated technologies and train people with the necessary skills needed and to be ready for the workplace of the future.

As South Africa’s unemployment rate is at 27% it is critical that people gain job skill training and are empowered to become agile entrepreneurs that are responsive to their environment and able to solve real-world problems in their communities. As technology is at the core of 4.0 IR, additional training is provided to equip some participants with coding and programming skills to help them understand the internet of things (IoT) and automation.

“We aim to provide training that equips people to start work immediately and have been pleased to see that several of the participants that completed the training have helped to repair the ageing infrastructure at several schools across Gauteng,” added Smit. “This is a first step towards building the Gauteng cities of the future and improving the lives of both beneficiaries and residents across Gauteng.”

To find out more about the Moses Kotane Skills Centre or to learn more about this programme please contact:

 

Mr Wesley Jacobs	Department of Infrastructure Development	Wesley.Jacobs@gauteng.gov.za
Mr. Kgabo Sebina	EPWP Programme	Kgabo.Sebina@gauteng.gov.za
Mr Corrie Smit	Resolution Circle (Pty) Ltd	corries@resolutioncircle.co.za.www1.jnb2.host-h.net

Johannesburg, 26 March 2019: Today the Moses Kotane Skills Development Centre celebrated its first 1000 Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) Beneficiary graduates at a certification ceremony held at University of Johannesburg (UJ) Doornfontein Campus. The graduates have completed vocational orientated technical or non- technical skills training according to their preference. In attendance at the ceremony was Mr Jacob Mamabolo, MEC for Infrastructure Development and Professor Marwala, UJ Vice-Chancellor.

The Moses Kotane Skills Centre was spearheaded by Mr Jacob Mamabola in 2018, to provide skills development training across various vocations in an effort to help alleviate unemployment and drive entrepreneurship across Gauteng. In support of this vision, the University of Johannesburg (UJ) and the Gauteng Department of Infrastructure Development (DID) signed a five-year memorandum of understanding which tasked Resolution Circle to build and operate the Moses Kotane Skills Centre.

“We are pleased to see so many people benefiting from Mr Mamabolo’s vision,” said Corrie Smit, Project Manager at Resolution Circle. “By helping the current cohort of EPWP beneficiaries gain well-needed technical and non-technical skills training, we are not equipping them with skills for jobs of the future, helping them to change their futures and improving the lives of residents across Gauteng.”

The graduates were trained at UJ’s Doornfontein campus while the DID Westhoven Depot is being repurposed into the Moses Kotane Skill Centre. The Moses Kotane Skills Centre aims to be ready to take on its first trainees in its new facilities from May 2019 where it will provide vocational training on the following tracks: mechanical, electrical, automation, electronics, carpentry, building and fitting and turning.

The Moses Kotane Skills Development Centre aims to train 3 200 participants in 2019.

To find out more about the Moses Kotane Skills Centre or to learn more about this programme please contact:

Mr Wesley Jacobs	Department of Infrastructure Development	Wesley.Jacobs@gauteng.gov.za
Mr. Kgabo Sebina	EPWP Programme	Kgabo.Sebina@gauteng.gov.za
Mr Corrie Smit	Resolution Circle (Pty) Ltd	corries@resolutioncircle.co.za.www1.jnb2.host-h.net