Capital Equipment News June 2018

SKILLS DEVELOPMENT

Tackling the skills shortage head on

There is a strong correlation between a skilled society and a country’s sustainable economic growth. The absence of the former inhibits the possibilities of the latter. With that in mind, Volvo Group Southern Africa is taking a leading role in skills development with a range of initiatives commended by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa during a recent visit to Volvo Trucks’ Durban assembly plant. By Munesu Shoko

A t a recent presidential visit to Ramaphosa commended Volvo Group Southern Africa for its ongoing commit- ment to skills development, based on the company’s understanding that education is a long-term solution to resolving the acute skills shortage in the country. In a country where six million young people are out of work, and 56% of the one million young people entering the job market each year don’t have a matric, giving them little hope of employment, there is real need for all stakeholders, government, labour and business, to pull together in the fight against both unemployment and the lack of skills that the job market requires, now and into the future. Skills development for the youth to open job opportunities for them is something Volvo Trucks South Africa’s Durban assembly facility, President Cyril

close to President’s Ramaphosa’s heart. Since his inauguration, he has championed the Youth Employment Service (YES), said to be one of the first social compacts between government, business and labour, created to give one million youth job opportunities, which in turn will secure South Africa’s economic prosperity. Over the next three years, the YES – led and supported by the private sector – will incentivise businesses to employ young people, giving them the chance at life- changing first work experience. In addition, to encourage demand-side job creation, companies employing black youth between 18 and 29 years of age will qualify for the Employment Tax Incentive. While several companies are likely to join this youth employment and upskilling initiative for the incentives that it offers, Volvo Group Southern Africa has a different

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