As American track and field athlete Wilma Rudolph said, “The triumph can’t be had without the struggle.”
Everyone wants a better life, but the question you have to ask yourself is; are you willing to put in the work to achieve it?
In this article, we look at an initiative that helped young South Africans ask just that and gives them the opportunities and resources they need to kickstart their careers.
The Energy Mobility Education Trust (EMET) programme, previously known as the BPSA Education Foundation, started in 2020 and has continued throughout the Covid-19 lockdown.
This programme has taught 88 youths basic and intermediate computer skills thus far, including the Cisco IT Essentials Course, Office Suite Skills, introduction to coding, entrepreneurship and Work Readiness. 32 of them were also provided with a year of work experience, in partnership with YES.
Thembinkosi Ndlovu, an IT Facilitator for ORT SA, had this to say about the programme: “We wanted to alleviate youth unemployment in our communities, and we wanted to empower the youth for them to become employable or start their own business.”
“I could tell that the beneficiaries well-received this program because they were very enthusiastic about learning and applying what they had learnt. Even though some of the beneficiaries needed more attention, the majority of them did an amazing job.” Added Thembinkosi.
EMET CEO, Vuyo Mwase, emphasised the importance of the ORT SA programme to the Trust’s mandate – to upskill South African youth with relevant knowledge and skills in STEM and facilitate their employability.
In closing, Nelson Mandela once said: “It always seems impossible until it’s done.” Despite all the challenges faced in 2020, The Energy Mobility Foundation in partnership with ORT SA accomplished their goal for the year by completing the program successfully and equipping young South Africans with the skills and knowledge they need to become tomorrow’s leaders.
