Gugulethu youths brave the cold

On Thursday, 8 June the Western Cape Department of Infrastructure hosted another successful Youth Empowerment Open Day, this time at the iKhwezi Hall, in Gugulethu.

The Open Day provided the community of the greater Gugulethu an opportunity to learn about the department’s empowerment programmes. Applications for the department’s Trade Learnership in the Cape Metro opened on June 1 and closes on the 30th. The day comprised of presentations on supply chain consumer education for aspiring Small Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs) and the Masakh’iSizwe Bursary programme.

The emerging contractors were educated on the compliance requirements for tendering for government construction and maintenance opportunities. With applications for Masakh’iSizwe bursaries closing on the 31st of August, the patrons were taken through presentations that explained in detail the requirements for applicants. This programme is rolled out through three higher education institution partners of the department, the University of Stellenbosch, the University of Cape Town, and the Cape Peninsula University of Technology.

The Provincial Minister of Infrastructure Tertuis Simmers reflected on the event and said: “I thoroughly enjoyed the event. In recent years Gugulethu has been associated with the wrong kind of headlines. We need to host these open day sessions to equip the youth with tools of empowerment and ensure we create hope in the community.”

The department will host similar youth empowerment sessions throughout the province in the coming weeks.

“Youth and SMMEs came out in their numbers and this is indicative of the community’s desire for these opportunities. I look forward to engaging other youth across the province” added Minister Simmers.