40 youth pave way for career in building

FORTY youths from Mdantsane will today receive certificates after a four-day building technical skills training workshop at the Mdantsane Youth Centre.

The workshop, a first-leg of a series of training stints, will see the group acquire accredited qualifications, enabling them to start their own construction companies and create job opportunities.

“This particular training focuses on house construction stages such as type of soils, foundations, super structure, roof and finishing, practical completion and occupational health and safety,” National Home Builders Registration Council (NHBRC) provincial training officer, Abongile Ntloko said.

“The programme is part of the NHBRC’s youth in construction skills development aimed at providing necessary skills for the youth to enter the construction industry, either as workers or company owners,” Ntloko said.

Later this month, NHBRC will offer a homebuilding technical skills course targeting emerging contractors in Mbizana.

Founder of non-profit organisation, Priyo Yakhi Phupha, Palesa Mahlatjie, which aims to empower communities by bringing such projects to unemployed youths through municipal structures, said: “Buffalo City has been boasting about fastbecoming a construction site, and it only makes sense to equip the unemployed youth as to allow them to get employment opportunities from everything that is happening around them.

“There are so many housing developments where they can also be employed and give the youth more work experience.”

Anda Latendle, 32, said he had learnt a lot from the training.

“After this training certificate I will be receiving (it) will open up doors for me,” he said. —