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Polity | 2 October 2023 The Metro Grounds Housing project in George promises to deliver 631 housing opportunities. 436 will be Breaking New Ground (BNG) top structures while 195 will be serviced sites. This project has a projected budget of R166 644 404.11 with 55% of that budget being spent to date. This project has so far contributed to job creation in the immediate local area, with 16 local enterprises employed and 172 Expanded Public Work Programme (EPWP) employments. A dedicated enterprise development programme is also being used to not only appoint and utilize local enterprises, but to purposefully develop them. Formal mentorship and training are provided across several topics including: • Legislative and compliance requirements • Business and finance management • Human resources and labour relationship management • Site management • Tenders and procurement • CIBD registrations and upgrading requirements MPP Matlhodi Maseko says: “The Metro Grounds Housing project in George delivers both housing opportunities and jobs to the people of George. This exciting housing project hopes to inject dignity into the lives of the beneficiaries, while boosting money into the local economy by contracting local businesses for the development of this project. A dedicated enterprise development program has been implemented, which doesn’t just hire local businesses, but helps them to grow and develop new skills. The completion of the Metro Ground Housing project is expected for June 2024.” ‘Disclaimer - The views expressed here are not necessarily those of the BEE CHAMBER’. https://www.polity.org.za/article/r166-million-housing-project-in-george-providing-local-jobs-and-skills-development-opportunities-2023-10-02

IOL Reporter | 2 October 2023 South Africa’s economy needs greater support of regulatory measures to tackle prevailing concentration challenges that shut out potential competitors, particularly Small, Medium, and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs). Such regulations are required across the board, but the 17th Annual Competition Law, Economics, and Policy Conference highlighted the energy, national health insurance (NHI), and food sectors as requiring special focus. Market concentration is not just a matter of economic policy, but a fundamental prerequisite for fostering innovation, ensuring fair competition, and safeguarding the interest of consumers and businesses alike, says Competition Commission (CCSA) deputy commissioner Hardin Ratshisusu. For this reason, the Commission has an important role to play in shaping a fair and competitive economic landscape. The conference, opened by Commissioner Doris Tshepe, emphasised the critical need for fostering competitive markets that benefit all participants and addressed the persistence of high concentration levels in the economy. Despite the diligent efforts of the Commission and the Competition Act, the high concentration levels within South Africa’s economy remain an ongoing challenge. The primary objective of the conference was to engage stakeholders from diverse sectors, including business, government, labour, lawyers, and economists, to strategise methods for promoting competitive markets. Particular emphasis was placed on fostering participation, especially from SMMEs and firms controlled by historically disadvantaged persons (HDPs). Food inflation was a key focus at the conference, specifically its impact on low-income consumers. Strategies to address rising inflation, and the adoption of a competition protocol by African governments to facilitate cross-border trade, while ensuring competitiveness, were issues discussed. In her keynote address on day two of the conference, Competition Tribunal chairperson Mondo Mazwai delved into competition law and its crucial role in promoting inclusive markets and public interest in merger assessments. She cautioned that the journey towards fostering competitive and inclusive markets in South Africa may not yield immediate economic transformation or substantial SMME and HDP involvement, but said the persistent efforts of competition authorities, albeit gradual, play a vital role in shaping progress. By embracing a context-aware, transformative approach consistent with the Act's framework, Mondo says competition authorities can make meaningful contributions to South Africa's transformation objectives, one case at a time. The energy and the national health insurance (NHI) sectors were also key discussions, with panellists discussing how the energy sector faces challenges related to the country’s ongoing energy crisis. They agreed that there was a need to foster inclusive growth within the sector encompassing equitable pricing considerations for renewable energy components such as inverters and solar panels – ultimately, there is the need to ensure competitive markets that benefit all South Africans. In summary of the conference, Tshepe emphasises the importance of inclusive growth and highlights the tools at the Commission's disposal, including market inquiries, to address concentration levels and remove barriers to entry. She cites the ongoing market inquiry into the fresh produce market as an example of efforts to promote competitiveness and inclusivity in the economy. “The Commission remains committed to its mission of creating competitive markets that work for the benefit of all stakeholders.” ‘Disclaimer - The views expressed here are not necessarily those of the BEE CHAMBER’. https://www.iol.co.za/news/more-competition-needed-in-sas-economy-especially-food-energy-nhi-sectors-a11a5144-d2a0-4f7d-9b1c-25d876eda2dc

It-Online | 2 October 2023 All South African companies and entities were required to submit beneficial ownership information to the CIPC (Companies and Intellectual Property Commission) before 1 October 2023. If they didn’t meet the deadline, they have a grace period until their next CIPC annual return is due, but then they will need to complete the process within 30 days to avoid falling foul of the new rules and risk penalties. This is according to Joshua Alexandre, InfoDocs founder and CEO, who says: “Over 6 000 beneficial ownership declarations have already been submitted via InfoDocs by the 1 October deadline. The majority of these were by professionals who help privately held businesses to manage CIPC compliance.” The beneficial owners are those individuals who ultimately own or control a company, either directly or indirectly. Although the Companies Act requires a register of those who own or control 5% or more of legal entities, the new laws provide greater transparency about ownership and control structures, which the CIPC will maintain in a central database. The intention is to avoid money laundering and combat terrorism financing. Alexandre says: “The consequences of not knowing who owns and controls companies in South Africa have been dire. Linking beneficial ownership for all companies and close corporations is an important step in preventing abuse, and avoiding further state capture in South Africa.” Private companies (Pty), close corporations (CC), non-profits (NPC), and state-owned companies (SOC) all need to file beneficial ownership. Any individual or entity holding more than 5% beneficial ownership of a company or close corporation must submit a register of beneficial owners to CIPC. The beneficial interest in relation to a company’s securities is entitlement through ownership, agreement, relationship or otherwise. Companies can access the online system directly on CIPC’s website, but they are put off by the complexity of the inefficient process and prefer to outsource the job to professionals. This can be a costly exercise and consequently over 72% of businesses are not compliant. InfoDocs provides a system that is used by professionals and SMEs to add their company directly from CIPC, produce professional templates and store company records securely online. ‘Disclaimer - The views expressed here are not necessarily those of the BEE CHAMBER’. https://it-online.co.za/2023/10/02/cipc-updates-deadline-for-beneficial-ownership-compliance/

Precious Gumede | 30 September 2023 The programme will run in intervals, starting with a group of 10. A non-profit based in Bhoboyi, near Murchison in partnership with three local business owners from Port Shepstone is running a free driving programme aimed at empowering individuals. The founder of Linda Legacy Foundation, Sthembile Linda said the programme will assist individuals who don’t have driver’s licences. “My partners and I saw that many of our youth are faced with unemployment, and a stumbling block among others is that they don’t have a driver’s licence. We decided to be the change we wanted to see.” Linda along with Bhekani Mbambo of B&H Logistics and Towing, Muhle Ronald Mbili from Mfanomuhle Driving School, Dumisani Dubaza Maluleka, a community liaison officer from Bhoboyi and Themba Tshabalala from A&T Busy Corner decided to be the solution makers. She said the programme will run in intervals, starting with a group of 10. “The beneficiaries will start with a learner’s licence course, on passing the test they will start driving lessons until they acquire their driver’s licence,” Linda added. All are encouraged to apply. “We want individuals who are hungry for success and are focused on changing their own lives.” Applicants must be above 18 and have completed matric. “We want them to share their story as to how the licence will impact their life.” Applications are open and will close on Friday, October 6. Email lindalegacyfoundation@gmail.com ‘Disclaimer - The views expressed here are not necessarily those of the BEE CHAMBER’. https://www.citizen.co.za/south-coast-herald/news-headlines/local-news/2023/09/30/youth-to-benefit-from-driving-programme/

Ina Opperman | 1 October 2023 Billions are spent ever year on training and skills programmes for South Africa’s youth. The challenge is that while tens of thousands of youth learn new skills, they do not necessarily have a clear path into actual jobs. “What we need is a more targeted approach. For a growing number of institutions and businesses, the answer appears to lie in youth learnership programmes that lead to direct employment. The World Bank and the International Labour Organisation certainly think so, saying learnerships can have long-term positive effects on skills development, entrepreneurship and economic development,” Shobana Maikoo, head of TransUnion’s Global Capability Centre (GCC) in Africa, says. “Learnerships are a key tool in South Africa’s ongoing struggle to get young people employed. The GCC’s own experience highlights the effectiveness of this approach. Since being founded in 2021, it employed 60% of its 100+ learners full time after their 12-month learnerships.” She says businesses must be more precise in their upskilling efforts and focus on specific skills that are sought after in the local market. “In other words, skills that will land these learners actual jobs. The beauty of learnerships is that they effectively provide on-the-job training for the roles the youth might transition into.” Learnerships can combat unemployment The transformative effects of a learnership cannot be understated. Just ask Ntombikayise Skosana (25) from Tsakane, who matriculated in 2014 and was then unemployed for seven years. With no experience, she could not get a job. With no job, she could not get experience. It is a familiar catch-22 that millions of young people know all too well. Skosana started her learnership at the GCC Africa in November 2021 and today she is a management information systems analyst, looking to build on her qualifications and develop a meaningful career. “Our learnership programme has been designed to cater for young individuals with limited work experience or qualifications. Over the course of 12 months, they get international work experience and practical skills by working alongside experienced professionals and being involved in real projects,” says Maikoo. Another GCC learner, mother of one, Mbali Ndimande (28), grew up in Orange Farm in the south of Johannesburg. Despite graduating from the University of Johannesburg, she found herself unemployed for years and was about to give up hope of finding stable employment. She joined TransUnion’s GCC Africa learnership programme in November 2022 and today works full-time in the client operations department, supporting TransUnion’s United States market. However, it is not just the learners themselves who benefit, Maikoo says. “Employers benefit from financial support, including government grants, tax deductions and B-BBEE points, for providing learnership training. Learnership programmes also create a pipeline of skilled employees, who add value to the business and support its growth.” She says many South African businesses spend significant amounts of money each year on skills and development programmes. “Our challenge to the broader business sector is to find ways to create more learnerships. In the process, they will have a far greater impact on their own businesses, while helping make a dent in our country’s unemployment crisis.” ‘Disclaimer - The views expressed here are not necessarily those of the BEE CHAMBER’. https://www.citizen.co.za/business/personal-finance/are-learnerships-answer-sa-youth-unemployment-crisis/

Ray Mahlaka and Tim Cohen | 30 September 2023 Board members, executives and CEO of state-owned enterprise Sanral launch a passionate defence of bid adjudication process after Chinese companies awarded road and bridge construction project tenders worth billions of rands. Two of South Africa’s largest road and bridge construction projects were ultimately granted to Chinese companies despite the bidders being disqualified early in the bidding process, tender documents show. The contracts, granted by the Development Bank of Southern Africa under rules determined by the South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral), were for the R4.05-billion Mtentu Bridge contract, South Africa’s largest bridge, and the R4.1-billion EB Cloete Interchange project, the largest road project ever allocated by Sanral. These infrastructure megaprojects are among government initiatives to strengthen the country’s logistics and transport corridors, grow the economy and create jobs. The EB Cloete Interchange project will involve the widening of the N2 and N3 national roads in KwaZulu-Natal. The upgrade of the N2 will focus on 55km of road from Lovu River on the south coast to Um­­dloti on the north coast. The N3 upgrade will focus on 80km from Durban to Pietermaritzburg. The project will take eight to 10 years to complete. Once completed by the end of 2027, the Mtentu Bridge will be 1,132m long and form part of Sanral’s N2 Wild Coast Road programme, which involves a 410km stretch from East London to the Mtamvuna River on the border between the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal. With the decline of South Africa’s railways, the national road network run by Sanral has become a vital commercial artery. However, the decision-making and methodology used by Sanral, a state-owned enterprise (SOE), have become increasingly questioned by business and the construction industry, which is already in a parlous state. In the case of the Mtentu Bridge, tender documents show that neither of the only two applications, the Stefstocks G-LTA Mtentu Joint Venture (JV) and the China Communications Construction Company Mecsa JV, met the eligibility requirements set out by the tender documents. These requirements are normally assessed early in the process of adjudicating a tender, so it’s worrying that neither of the applicants was considered eligible. The tender documents show that, on hearing about the disqualification of applicants, “Sanral’s ac­­count­ing authority sought a legal opinion and resolved that the two bids must be considered as qualifying and therefore be handled as such”. Sanral’s accounting authority is its chairman, Themba Mhambi. He issued a “formal directive”, which read: “The Accounting Au­thority of Sanral has noted the recommendation for the disqualification of the two bids for the Mtentu Bridge tender. After, however, considering a legal opinion at its disposal, the Ac­­counting Authority [of Sanral] has re­solved that the two bids must be considered as qualifying and therefore be handled as such. “The relevant committees are therefore di­­rec­­ted to proceed with the consideration of the two bids as qualifying”. On 27 Sep­­tem­ber, Sanral board members and executives, including CEO Reginald Demana, launched a passionate defence of the company’s project approval processes, saying all recently awarded contracts, including the Mtentu Bridge project, were above board. “They [the contracts] have been run through a rigorous process. It was the board’s prerogative to waive … any process as the accounting authority. “In the end, there was nothing in the process that was material enough to say the process was fatally flawed and should be cancelled. And those contract awards went ahead,” said Demana during a briefing to journalists. He said Sanral believes the tender process was run “normally” by the SOE despite neither of the bidders meeting the tender requirements at the evaluation stage, and being chosen after the board’s intervention. The process in the case of the EB Cloete Interchange was slightly different. The appointed contractors, Base Major together with China State Construction Engineering Company, also did not pass the first round of tender evaluations. This joint venture, which also won the contract for the Ashburton Interchange on the N3 close to Pietermaritzburg, also did not get through the first round of tender evaluations on this project. In these cases, the project was readvertised and subsequently granted to the Base Major-China State joint venture. However, according to insiders, the awards were made subject to the provision of documentation. Intense criticism The Development Bank of Southern Africa, which had been roped in to oversee Sanral’s tender bidding processes, has been approached for comment but has yet to respond. In recent months, Sanral has come under intense criticism from the construction industry for how it adjudicates and awards tenders, and for the inclusion of Chinese companies in South Africa’s infrastructure mega­projects. South Africa’s embattled construction industry is a third of the size it was a decade ago, mainly because of the weak economy and a decline in infrastructure spending by the government and state agencies, including Sanral. Since 2018, Sanral has spent less than half of the grant it receives from the government to embark on infrastructure projects. In 2021/22, it left R10.4-billion of its R15.4-billion budget unspent. The local construction industry wants Sanral to include it in infrastructure projects. However, Sanral’s Demana also defended the involvement of Chinese firms in the agency’s contracts. He said such firms are usually experienced and competitive in delivering projects cost-effectively and on time. “This is not to say that our local contractors are inferior. Some of the local companies have not invested in skills for 20 or 30 years and don’t have expertise in a particular area,” he said. “Therefore, they tend to bid incorrectly for projects. The costs can come up much higher than a firm that is experienced. Price is often a key determinant in the tenders.” But what Demana failed to mention is that Chinese firms in some of Sanral’s contracts, including the one involving the Mtentu Bridge, had the advantage of knowing the prices from previous bids, including those submitted by competing bidders based in South Africa, because the projects were being adjudicated for the second time. The Chinese firms would have had information about the pricing when they moved up the bidding stages and were getting closer to being selected as preferred bidders. Although they are active in the rest of Africa, Chinese construction firms have not gained a large foothold in South Africa. One of the main reasons is that South Africa has a well-developed construction industry and most local companies have strong empowerment profiles, as many firms are 100% black-owned. This is an imperative when state agencies like Sanral adjudicate tender bids. Chinese firms often have little to no empowerment credentials. To win contracts from Sanral, they often have to partner with local companies, piggybacking on their empowerment credentials. Most Sanral contracts, like the ones for the Mtentu Bridge and EB Cloete Interchange, carry a 30% local participation requirement for all bidders. The Chinese firms would have to subcontract some of the project work to local communities and companies (mainly small and medium enterprises). Although local communities and companies are being brought into the value chain, Chinese companies would still lead the execution of a project. Even though these mechanisms for the participation of local companies and communities in Sanral contracts have largely been welcomed, the industry is still puzzled by how the agency handed contracts to Chinese firms for the Mtentu Bridge and EB Cloete Interchange projects. Chris Campbell, the CEO of Consulting Engineers South Africa, an industry body, questioned the fairness of the Sanral tender process that gave a price advantage to the Chinese firms. “As much as we see ourselves as part of the global village and partnership, it would have been much better had we placed more emphasis on localisation and growing our own local companies,” said Campbell. Webster Mfebe, the CEO of the South African Forum of Civil Engineering Contractors, was not concerned about the awarding of contracts to Chinese firms, but he hoped that Sanral applied the principles of fairness, competitiveness and transparency during its tender adjudication process, and followed the requirements of the Constitution. But he was concerned that the principle of fairness and competitiveness may not have been followed, considering that the information about the Mtentu Bridge and EB Cloete Interchange projects, especially pricing in previous bidding rounds, was in the market and known, potentially benefitting the Chinese companies. Sanral has also ruffled feathers with changes to its Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE) and a new preferential procurement policy it applies when adjudicating tenders, which major construction firms believe will make it difficult for them to win contracts from the agency. In the latest development, at least two construction firms, H&I Construction and SMEC South Africa, have obtained interim court orders to stop Sanral’s evaluation of projects using its new preferential procurement policy. Both interim interdicts were granted pending court applications to review and set aside the new policy. H&I Construction and SMEC South Africa have accused Sanral of not consulting the industry widely on the changes to the policy before implementing them. Sanral currently has about 200 tenders advertised in the market, with a value of about R33-billion. Sanral has estimated that a third of the issued tenders (with a value of R11-billion) will be affected by the court interdicts, but the roll-out of most of its planned projects will continue. Controversy about new system Preferential procurement is the system that paves the way for historically disadvantaged groups and companies to earn extra points in the scoring of tenders, helping them to emerge successful in the bidding process. In the past, Sanral used a bidder’s BBBEE rating to allocate a max­­­i­­­mum of 10 or 20 points out of 100 (depending on the value of the project) for compliance with the agency’s preferential procurement requirements, mainly its empowerment criteria. Companies with a Level 1 BBBEE rating (the highest and most coveted empowerment status) could automatically receive the full number of points. In May, Sanral abruptly changed the weighting of the 10 and 20 points for preferential procurement to provide maximum benefit for 100% black-owned firms. Sanral’s changes, argued H&I Construction, would relegate a bidder’s BBBEE rating to a mere 1 point, in the case of a tender valued at more than R50-million, or 2 points when a tender has a value between R30,000 and R50-million. Essentially, Sanral’s new preferential procurement would render some construction companies un­­­able to compete for contracts. Despite the court challenges, Sanral is sticking to its new procurement policy. Mhambi, the board chair, said the SOE believes that transformation is a constitutional imperative, and “we will drive it as long as we are the governing structure of Sanral”. Mhambi said that, despite all the transformation initiatives that Sanral is pushing, the biggest construction companies in South Africa are still the top beneficiaries of its contracts. “We will continue to support big companies in the construction space, but we will not do that at the expense of the small companies,” he said. “We will do that within a context that makes use of the big companies to assist the smaller companies to benefit, hence our subcontracting requirements, request for skills transfers to smaller companies, our insistence on the employment of local communities wherever we are doing business and our insistence on progressively increasing the ownership of black people in businesses in South Africa.” ‘Disclaimer - The views expressed here are not necessarily those of the BEE CHAMBER’. https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2023-09-30-sanral-on-a-rocky-road-in-wake-of-billion-rand-infrastructure-projects-awarded-to-disqualified-chinese-firms/

Staff Writer | 28 September 2023 Amid record levels of unemployment in South Africa, FirstRand co-founder and former CEO Paul Harris believes scrapping the minimum wage for anyone under 25 would have a notable impact on the country’s unemployment crisis. Last week, the Financial Mail asked 23 of South Africa’s top CEOs and power brokers how they would change the trajectory of South Africa and upend the narrative of failure – including Harris. Regarding his short-term strategy, Harris told the publication that he would scrap the minimum wage for anyone under the age of 25 – making it easier to hire and fire employees. “At present, people get the social grant without working, but the youth can’t enter the job market by voluntarily working for less than the minimum wage,” he said. “The outcome of minimum wages has been more unemployment and fewer viable SMEs; they employ fewer people, and more go bust. “The government should stand up in support of the unemployed – they haven’t got a union,” he added. Harris’ perspective on the National Minimum Wage (NWM) echoes the sentiments of business groups and other experts, who’ve voiced their concerns that the NMW – and the annual increases of such a wage – is not conducive in the current economic climate, especially for SMEs. It has only added to the unemployment queue in South Africa. The latest increase, announced in February, saw the national minimum wage hiked by 9.6%, bringing it up to R25.42 per hour. While unions and labourers welcomed the increase, employers and labour organisations were less enthused. Specifically, the latter raised alarms over the increase being far above inflation, pointing out that the wage was hiked around four percentage points higher than expected inflation for the year. This increases the cost of labour in a business environment already under pressure due to the prevailing economic conditions. Business groups acknowledged that the hardships faced by many minimum wage earners in South Africa and the dire economic circumstances they find themselves in could not be ignored, and the purpose of the NMW is to ensure a living wage. However, the challenging environment in South Africa has created hardships for wage earners and employers alike. Legal experts have argued that the national minimum wage itself is mostly smoke and mirrors. Firstly, the wage is not a living wage in South Africa – and secondly, it disincentivises businesses from hiring new employees due to the cost and the stringent labour laws that often protect workers over employers. As the wage increases, costs go up – and businesses, particularly SMEs, that can no longer afford the overheads cannot easily let workers go. Another issue with the minimum wage is that South Africa’s unemployment rate is so high that almost half the population is without any wage at all. According to the latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS), South Africa’s official unemployment rate is 32.6%, while the expanded definition – including those not actively looking for work – is 42.1%. However, the Department of Labour said that the national minimum wage has not impacted employment levels or raised unemployment in sectors it has assessed. ‘Disclaimer - The views expressed here are not necessarily those of the BEE CHAMBER’. https://businesstech.co.za/news/business-opinion/721328/scrap-the-national-minimum-wage-for-those-under-25-in-south-africa-says-former-ceo/

Murray Swart | 28 September 2023 Mayco Member for Economic Growth James Vos cut the ribbon at the opening of Ivilitex yesterday, a new high-tech clothing and textile manufacturing facility in Epping. The garment manufacturer is a division of the Ivili Group, a South African women-owned company that is aiming to lead the charge towards increasing locally produced apparel from the current 44% to 65% by 2030. ‘I had the privilege of meeting with the founders of the Ivili Group last year and helping them to connect with other suppliers and roleplayers in the clothing ecosystem,’ said Vos at the official opening. ‘To see them take this massive step forward, both for themselves and for the clothing and textile manufacturing sector at large, is gratifying and an example of the power of networking opportunities.’ Ivilitex’s initial production will consist of jeanswear for the local retailer market and will make use of state-of-the-art technology that will allow for the production and washing of garments with optimum levels of output and efficiency while maintaining the lowest impact on the environment. With this machinery, the factory team can produce a pair of jeans in less than 13 minutes. Once their full staff complement of a few hundred people are on site, the facility is aiming for a capacity of 1 500 units per day and 33 000 per month. Vos said that Cape Town is home to a colourful patchwork of clothing and textile companies and that the industry was a key driver of economic growth and job creation in the metro and province. ‘From the small and medium-sized enterprises to large retailers with global footprints, the local industry makes up around 14% of manufacturing employment in the country, meaning that it facilitates an estimated 60 000 to 80 000 jobs. Of this, 23 800 people work in Cape Town.’ ‘Research by the Cape Clothing and Textile Cluster – a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) that the City proudly funds and works with to foster sectoral skills development and investments – has found that at least 20 000 jobs can be created in this industry in the Mother City alone.’ ‘To do this, we must focus our efforts on building local production and supporting innovative products and practices such as those from companies such as Ivili Group. Over the next financial year (July 2023 – June 2024), the City has allocated R41 million in its ‘Building Hope’ Budget towards SPV projects to attract jobs and investors to Cape Town. With our projects and programmes, we will continue to lay the foundations for a stronger economy that supports more people and makes Cape Town the easiest place in Africa to do business,’ he added. ‘Disclaimer - The views expressed here are not necessarily those of the BEE CHAMBER’ https://www.capetownetc.com/news/clothing-and-textile-factory/

Jessica Hawkey | 27 September 2023 Even as South Africa grapples with one of the highest youth unemployment rates globally – with 8,9-million unemployed young people according to Statistics South Africa – traditional approaches to tackling the issue have been met with limited success. By Jessica Hawkey, MD of redAcademy A major challenge is that most skills development programmes focus only on training, and leave the rest to young people. It is clear that an alternative model is needed to tackle youth unemployment: one that not only imparts skills that are in demand, but provides real workplace experience and employment upon completion. Young people in South Africa face immense challenges, starting right when they are still in school, and have to figure out what path to take next to earn a living and be able to support their families. A lack of career guidance and exposure to the right social networks, however, tends to result in youth enrolling in courses that do not match with their skills and interests or current industry requirements, reducing their chances of success and employability. An academic qualification alone is of little help, with data from Stats SA showing that one in four young people in South Africa come from an environment where no one in their family is formally employed, leaving them with little support or guidance to navigate the world of work. Then, based on research conducted by Youth Capital, an advocacy campaign centering youth voices and experiences in solutions to tackle the youth unemployment crisis, there is the high cost of job seeking with youth having to spend between R500 and R1 000 per month, just to look for work. This is a high cost for someone who is unemployed, and often they are forced to choose between putting food on the table and going out to look for work. It comes as no surprise, then, that the majority of youth have been looking for work for more than one year – according to the same Youth Capital research report, titled “Beyond the cost: What does it really cost young people to look for work?”. Then, there is the family pressure: because they have studied, there is an expectation that they should now be earning and contributing, which places an additional burden on them and potentially impacts their mental health. It has become painfully apparent that the traditional ways of skills development and training have failed to make a substantial impact in tackling youth unemployment in the country, and that alternatives are required. There is a need to move away from training for training’s sake, and toward scalable, sustainable solutions that equip young people with relevant skills that are in demand by the market, thereby providing real career pathways. Private sector partnerships the way forward One such example of an alternative approach to youth skills development is redAcademy, a Cape Town-based organisation that partners with the private sector and operates inside clients’ live IT environments. Through its rigorous and refined recruitment methodology young people are upskilled to match the exact requirements of corporate partners. Candidates here enter into a one-year programme where the first six months are weighted toward theoretical and practical components, and the second six months are weighted towards actual, real-world development of solutions for private sector partners. In this way, Sprinters, as the candidates are known, get workplace exposure as well as experience software development in the real world. Not only does such an approach take the cost out of job seeking for South Africa’s youth, but they are also exposed to a network that links them with opportunity when they are done with their year-long course. In this case, Sprinters have permanent employment from the very first day after completing the course, due to the work experience gained from the programme. “redAcademy understands that young people come from difficult backgrounds, as well as the societal issues they face, and has created an environment that is supportive and works to ensure that they are setting up these young people for long-term success. This includes partnering with the private sector right from the start in order to train young people based on what is needed by industry,” says Kristal Duncan-Williams, Project Lead at Youth Capital. Upskilling also has to go beyond academic training; businesses often don’t hire young people because of the growing gap between the world of study and work, and they are hesitant to invest their time and resources into training to bridge this gap in order to get new employees up to speed. Apart from a six-month involvement with private sector partners that gives them experience in the world of work, redAcademy also focuses on areas such as soft skills, which cannot be learnt from a textbook, but can only really be learnt through modelling and practice. Many businesses are so busy with the day to day work that training first-time hires is just too much to ask, but the reality is that the addition of skilled youth can help them grow. However, most are unaware of what initiatives are out there to provide them with the skilled young people that they need. Involving business owners upfront in initiatives like redAcademy can help them find the right employees to grow their business and benefit from having access to work-ready youth; while young people get the opportunity to start a career in a growing field. “Nine million young South Africans are currently unemployed. South African businesses have to think about how they can address this challenge; if this high level of unemployment persists, where will they get employees from in the future? Who will be their future customers if no one has money to spend? redAcademy works for young people who have a natural talent and affinity for the technology field. While not all young people want to work in this field, it does create more pathways to leverage their talent and meet the skills needs of local businesses, and this model is the answer,” says Duncan-Williams. ‘Disclaimer - The views expressed here are not necessarily those of the BEE CHAMBER’. https://it-online.co.za/2023/09/28/skills-training-done-right-for-young-people-and-employers/

Roy Cokayne | 28 September 2023 Has been interdicted from implementing its new preferential procurement system on 67 projects. The SA National Roads Agency (Sanral) has defended its controversial new procurement scoring system and maintains the interim interdicts obtained by two construction companies preventing the implementation of it on 67 projects will not delay the rollout of its planned project pipeline. Sanral chair Themba Mhambi also stressed on Wednesday that Sanral will not bear any grudges against the construction companies that have challenged the road agency’s new scoring system. H&I Construction was granted an interim interdict in the High Court in Gqeberha, stopping Sanral from proceeding with the adjudication and award of two specific tenders in accordance with the amended tender scoring system as advertised by Sanral on 19 May 2023 in an addendum to its tender document. Nine construction companies submitted affidavits in support of H&I’s application. The High Court in Pretoria granted construction and infrastructure company SMEC South Africa an interim interdict stopping Sanral from proceeding with and/or implementing and/or giving effect to the outcome of the tender adjudication process related to a list of 65 bids to tender invitations. Both interim interdicts were granted pending applications to review and set aside the new scoring system. ‘Tainted’ tenders Sanral CEO Reginald Demana said the “tainted” tenders affected by these interdicts represent possibly about a third of the about 200 tenders Sanral has in the market. Mhambi said it takes between 12 to 18 months from the time Sanral advertises a tender to when it gets people on the ground with hard hats, shovels and wearing boots, which means the current issues with the interdict and the new preferential procurement scoring system is not going to stop Sanral working. “Our staff members can hardly cope [with all the work]. We have a project manager handling up to 21 projects,” he said. “So let’s kill the misconception that Sanral has come to a standstill … [and] the construction industry has come to a standstill.” Transformation Mhambi added that Sanral believes transformation is a constitutional imperative, and it will drive transformation as long as they are the governing structure of Sanral. He said despite all the transformation initiatives Sanral is pushing, the biggest construction companies in South Africa are still the biggest beneficiaries of the work being done by the roads agency. “We will continue to support big companies in the construction space, but we will not do that at the expense of the small companies. “We will do that within a context that makes use of the big companies to assist the smaller companies to benefit, hence our sub-contracting requirements, request for skills transfers to smaller companies, our insistence on the employment of local communities wherever we are doing business and our insistence on progressively increasing the ownership of black people in businesses in South Africa,” he said. ‘Business as usual’ Kaiser Khoza, Sanral’s chief legal, risk and compliance officer, said 65 projects plus two in Port Elizabeth were interdicted but not Sanral’s procurement policy. “We are continuing to implement that policy. There is a saying that an administrative decision or action remains valid until set aside by a court of law. “It remains valid. Sanral is business as usual,” he said. In the judgments to Part A of H&I and SMEC SA’s applications, the judges found that Sanral had implemented the new procurement policy without consultation. Attorney Hein von Lieres, who is acting for H&I, said the Part B court process had been delayed because Sanral failed to provide a complete record as required by the uniform rules of court. Von Lieres said it was only after H&I brought an application to compel Sanral to supplement the record that the roads agency eventually acquiesced and supplemented the record on 1 September 2023. “Sanral ought to have filed its answering papers to H&I’s founding affidavit and first supplementary founding affidavit by 13 September 2023. “The supplementary founding affidavit was filed on 31 July 2023. Thereafter, Sanral had 30 court days to file an answer, which brings one to 13 September 2023. “Bear in mind that the second supplementary affidavit … was necessary because Sanral had not delivered a complete record and had to be encouraged to supplement the incomplete record,” he said. Compliance Khoza disputed that Sanral had failed to comply with the court rules in terms of the timelines for filing its answer to H&I’s founding affidavit. He said Sanral waited a long time for the reasons for the judgment to Part A of the application, and it is only when that is delivered that it triggers the next step. Khoza also stressed that Sanral got more time to answer because H&I had filed supplementary affidavits, and WBHO had joined H&I’s application and had only filed its papers on Friday. He said the Judge President in the High Court in Gqeberha had “killed” all these issues by getting all the legal teams together, and everyone had agreed it was in their best interests to expedite the hearing of the application. Khoza said Sanral must file its answering affidavit by no later than this Friday, and a full bench will hear the matter in November. ‘Wrong facts’ During Wednesday’s Sanral briefing, Mhambi also addressed a number of issues where he claimed people had received “the wrong facts”. They included claims that: There are people who are suspended by Sanral because they refused to implement some decision retrospectively because that would have been illegal; Talk of resignations in droves; There is tension between the board and the management of Sanral; and Sanral is in a state of collapse. Mhambi said nobody at Sanral has ever been asked to implement any resolution retrospectively and illegally. He also denied Sanral has had “resignations in droves”. Mhambi confirmed about 27 people had resigned out of a workforce of about 550, but only about nine were people in its core business, and only one was a senior person who left after being charged with wrongdoing. He said there is “healthy tension” between the board and the management of Sanral. Mhambi further disputed that Sanral is in a state of collapse. “We are inundated with work even as we are talking. Check the reports of the big companies listed on the JSE and how much is in their order books from Sanral, and check how they see their pipeline moving forward from Sanral business. “We are being blackmailed. This is a ‘gogga’ that is being used to try and galvanise some sections of our society against the leadership of Sanral. “We do want to put that on record, and we want to blow that myth to smithereens,” he said. ‘Disclaimer - The views expressed here are not necessarily those of the BEE CHAMBER’. https://www.moneyweb.co.za/news/south-africa/sanral-continues-to-roll-out-its-project-pipeline-despite-interdicts/

Thobeka Ngema | 28 September 2023 Durban — UMlalazi Local Municipality and its employees in KwaZulu-Natal have been nominated in four categories in the Sebenza Women Awards 2023. UMlalazi Municipality communications manager Nonhlanhla Jele said that the municipality is on the rise with accomplishments on women empowerment. Jele said that women empowerment as a socio-economic fabric towards nation-building continues to grow leaps and bounds among women within uMlalazi Municipality. “For the first time in the history of this municipality, we have seen noble women of varying scales of capacities and capabilities ascending into elite Sebenza Women Awards for 2023,” Jele said. “This has come in the form of recognitions and nominations into various categories and sectors such as government and leadership, farming, and construction.” Jele said that uMlalazi Municipality as an institution has also risen to prominence with its recognition and nomination into the category of best practice in promoting gender equality. She said the municipality’s first woman mayor in the history of 60 years of its existence, councillor Queen Xulu, expressed gratitude following the nominations and encouraged other women to excel in their fields of competency. “Among the key recognitions and nominations, Her Worship, the mayor of uMlalazi Municipality, Queen (QT) Xulu has been given a nod in the category of Women in Government, while Lindelihle Gumede and Khanyiswa Thusi are nominees for the category of Women in Farming, Zinhle Ngema nominated for the category of Women in Construction, and lastly, uMlalazi Municipality getting nominated for the category of Best Performing Municipality in Gender Equality,” Jele said. The Sebenza Women Awards are scheduled to take place on October 6, 2023, at the Durban ICC. The annual Sebenza Women Awards is an event focused on rewarding women’s excellence and showcasing their brilliance, strength and achievements. This event also pays special attention to the youth, game changers and women from disadvantaged communities striving to make the world a better place. ‘Disclaimer - The views expressed here are not necessarily those of the BEE CHAMBER’. https://www.iol.co.za/dailynews/news/municipality-recognised-for-promoting-gender-equality-09ed2e55-1da4-4066-b15a-b703eb52dee8

Polity | 27 September 2023 Millions of unemployed and unskilled Gauteng residents continue to suffer with no jobs and no skills as the now defunct and money pit Tshepo 1 Million failed to deliver on its promise. This programme, launched in 2014 as Tshepo 500 000 for skills training, job placement, and entrepreneurship development and further developed as Tshepo 1Million in 2017, has failed the people of Gauteng. According to the 2022/23 annual report for the Office of the Premier, the Tshepo 1 Million programme has not met the Technical Indicator Descriptor (TID) requirements and failed to meet the consistency test. This is concerning, as the annual report would have indicated the achievements of this programme and progress that has been made in terms of creating employment opportunities in the province. The annual report for the 2022/2023 financial year notes that this programme in conjunction with Harambee, was terminated on 31 March 2023. In addition, a transition plan to wind down the Tshepo 1 Million is currently underway. The fact that there are no numbers for this programme for the year under review raises many questions. This means this programme was a waste of money, and only a handful benefited. The Democratic Alliance (DA) will be tabling questions to Premier Panyaza Lesufi in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature (GPL) to determine how many unemployed residents benefitted from this programme, what skills they were equipped with, and how the new programme announced by Premier Lesufi during his State of the Province Address (SOPA) will be implemented. ‘Disclaimer - The views expressed here are not necessarily those of the BEE CHAMBER’. https://www.polity.org.za/article/premier-lesufis-tshepo-1-million-programme-fails-unskilled-and-unemployed-youth-2023-09-27