The Impact Catalyst - June Highlights

As we concluded Youth Month, I was compelled to think more intently about, how the Impact Catalyst is addressing the unemployment crisis that grips our nation's young generation??

As a nation, we are facing a severe unemployment crisis, an after effect of the Covid-19 pandemic. In an effort to recover from the pandemic and address the opportunities and challenges brought on by the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), the Impact Catalyst participates in the?Social Employment Fund (SEF) programme – a collaborative initiative with the?Industrial?Development Corporation (IDC).?

Additionally, as part of ensuring no child gets left behind in the 4IR era, the Impact Catalyst together with several?partners, is?driving the?Schools Wi-Fi Project, which is essential for empowering youth and communities for the future world of work.

Aligned with the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) requirements, the Impact Catalyst SEF acts as a catalyst for job creation among South African youth. Through the SEF programme, 4,000 jobs have been created and new skills in agriculture and emerging sectors like alien vegetation removal have been gained. These job opportunities promote economic participation, economic diversification in mining reliant areas and support regional economic growth.?

On the other hand, with the 4IR wave being?accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic, there is an urgent need to close the gap between those who have the means to embrace the era of digitisation and those excluded from it.?Therefore, to bridge this gap, the Schools Wi-Fi Project provides internet access and digital exposure to learners, particularly in rural schools lacking access. By investing in the installation of broadband infrastructure, the project will facilitate programmes that develop learners' technical skills, preparing them for future jobs in programming and artificial intelligence.

Through each of these projects and the support we receive from our partners, we hope to continue facilitating digitalisation in communities and contributing to the alleviation of unemployment by imparting new skills in the youth.?

The Impact Catalyst (IC) together with the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), through the Social Employment Fund (SEF) programme, created 4?000 temporary jobs in?Northern Cape, Free State, Limpopo,?Mpumalanga, North-West and Gauteng, in?the previous financial year as a response to the skills and unemployment crisis in South Africa.

The programme aims to promote social employment that will serve the common good of underserved communities. This enables the inhabitants of the communities the IC operates in to gain new skills in areas that will enhance the community’s socio-economic environment and increase their own employability prospects.?

“Being a part of this programme has been very valuable for my personal skills development and improving the quality of life for my family. I’m able to earn money to feed my family and eat fresh food from our garden. Through the skills I have acquired, I want to teach other people” said SEF beneficiary, Lizzer Ramasobane from Armoede Community.?

The success that SEF achieved in the previous financial year and the local demand for the programme, led to SEF scale-up, which was introduced in April. The IDC allocated 3 500 participants to the IC for the scale up period, starting from 01 April 2023 to 31 July 2023.

“The SEF programme is a perfect fit in support of the IC’s mission of establishing inclusive, collaborative, cross-sectoral provincial platforms, initiatives and partnerships to achieve systemic socio-economic impact through public private partnerships.” said Impact Catalyst’s Social Employment Fund Programme Manager, Rhiyaan Cupido.

Currently, the Armoede One Home One Garden initiative is maintaining 471 greenhouse tunnels in the backyard of households and additional homes have been identified for greenhouse tunnel installation. While in Limpopo, the Ivanplats?waste management initiative has received praises from local partners and community members for raising the much-needed greening and environmental awareness within the community.?

Rural and township schools are among some of the schools in South Africa that run the risk of being left behind in the age of digitisation due to the lack of broadband infrastructure and internet connection.?

However, the tide is slowly turning for Northern Cape educators and learners as the Impact Catalyst (IC) in collaboration with Kumba Iron Ore, South 32, Assmang and Kudumane Managese Resources (KMR), are?installing Wi-Fi connectivity in eight schools as a demonstration of how collaborative?partnerships?can be an effective approach to?bridging the digital divide and enhancing teaching and learning in, and beyond the classroom.

The four Northern Cape mines collectively invested?and commissioned implementing agent, The Impact Catalyst, to provide schools in the John Taolo Gaetsewe and ZF Mgcawu districts with support to manage and maintain the broadband infrastructure beyond installation.??

“The era of digitisation?has revolutionized the world of work, changed the face of education and thrust us into a digital economy. The deeper we move into the 4IR era, the more urgent it is for us to work together with our partners in addressing the challenges that exacerbate the digital divide and socio-economic exclusion.?In?collaboration with?our?partners,?we are therefore committed to providing?schools with Wi-Fi?connectivity?to respond?to this challenge,” said IC ICT and Education Programme Manager, Thato Matsio.?

The?connectivity at?schools?will?include uncapped?data, insurance of?hardware, maintenance and support to enable access to internet services for three years.?The eight Northern Cape schools which will benefit from the programme?form part of the broader schools' connectivity initiative to make Wi-Fi services accessible to 300 schools?by the end?of?the year. This?collaborative initiative is?in partnership?with Anglo American,?Exxaro,?Sishen Iron Ore Community Trust in?Limpopo,?North-West, Northern Cape?and Mpumalanga.

"The learnings?in the implementation?and post?implementation process of the eight schools will?be?used?to?inform?how?the?school?connectivity?programme?in?the?Northern Cape?can be?scaled?using?a?multi partner?and stakeholder model.?The intention is to replicate this initiative using the identified collaboration model in other provinces as well," added Matsio.?

The Anglo American Foundation and The Impact Catalyst (IC) announced the launch of the Limpopo Road Safety Programme (LRSP) to curb pedestrian and road accidents in the province on the 09 May 2023.?

The LRSP comes with the announcement of 13 pre-identified projects over the three-year period with a focus on school road safety, community education and behaviour change, improving the capacity of Limpopo traffic officials, and the development of a traffic and road safety data management platform. Each of these projects will be rolled out in phases and will pull together local and international expertise to ensure successful implementation.

The Member of the Executive Council (MEC) for the Department of Transport and Community Safety, Ms Florence Radzilani, expressed her support for the project and indicated that the establishment of the programme signifies hope and renewal for Limpopo’s road safety implementation strategy.???

“While there has been considerable improvement in the number of fatalities on our provincial roads, reducing the number of roads and pedestrian crashes remains a priority for the Limpopo Province. This is why we deem the LRSP initiative to be a fitting response to strengthening road safety in the province. We hope that by partnering with organisations like the Anglo-American Foundation and the Impact Catalyst, we can solidify our road safety management and response systems while building communities that are empowered with the knowledge to make informed decisions and inspire behavioural change,” she added.?

The IC in collaboration with Office of the Premier in the province, will oversee the implementation of the 13 projects. The projects which will be rolled-out in phased over the next three years will aim to inspire behavioural change among drivers and pedestrians in the Limpopo region.?