Construction World September 2015

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CREATING LEARNING POSSIBILITIES

Leading construction materials company AfriSam, in partnership with the Mining Qualification Authority (MQA) and Media Works, has joined forces with community members in Rustenburg to create learning possibilities through the Adult Basic Education and Training (ABET) Programme.

The company is involved in various educational projects nationwide, with the objective of empowering and equipping communities with the knowledge and skills, as well as providing them with the tools and facilities to become self-reliant and sustainable. Traditional Councillor of the Royal Bafokeng Nation, Khutsafalo Tsebe said, “The Royal Bafokeng Nation is proud of AfriSam’s commitment and passion towards the development of education for our people. Education is the key to success, and our mission and vision as the Bafokeng Nation is to invest in upgrading the standard of our country’s education. We thank AfriSam for joining us in this mission, and we hope they keep up this excel- lent standard.” The ABET programme has also been extended to KwaZulu-Natal where 62 community members enrolled for training in January, 59 successfully graduated and were awarded with certificates by AfriSam.

On 29 May 2015, AfriSam honoured community members who successfully completed the ABET programme at a ceremony held at Tlhage Primary School in Rustenburg. Out of the 24 community members who started training in January, 11 successfully graduated and were awarded with certificates by AfriSam. The graduates also received a stipend from MQA, a Sector Education and Training Authority (SETA), responsible for the administration of skills development programmes for the mining and minerals sector in South Africa. Learning and development manager at AfriSam, Johan du Toit said, “We hope that the graduates are more than motivated and encour- aged to continue learning, with the vision of a better future for themselves and their communi- ties. Our role as AfriSam is to create possibilities and uphold our legacy of building communities by making it possible for our people to realise their dreams for the future benefit of our country.” AfriSam’s commitment to the programme is in line with the company’s overall community involvement mission, which is to understand the needs of society and communities in areas where it does business, and make meaningful and sustainable contributions to their upliftment. >

Smiling faces all around from the 2015 ABET graduates.

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ABET Programme top learner Goitseaona Kwele is congratulated by community leader Martin Mothata, Tlhage Primary School principal David Molefe, and AfriSam Rustenburg branch manager, Gerhard Maree.

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with a load and tend to overheat. In addition the time taken to travel over distances will be much increased and will require more vehicles to be put on the road in order to make the same amount of deliveries. In addition they remind the Department of Transport that speed limits are not properly enforced on our roads at present and that decreasing the speed limits will have no change on road deaths. After-hours ban In terms of Draft Regulation 318A, in which vehicles with a gross mass of more than 9 000 kg may not operate in urban areas at peak times during week days, Aspasa and Sarma caution strongly against this regulation being passed as it will have a serious effect on both industries and will negatively impact infrastructure development. Among others, buildingmaterial deliveries need to be scheduled in work hours when labour forces are present and the feasibility of smaller trucks is limited as many more trucks will need to be put on the road. In addition, large trucks that are accidently caught in the curfew time will have to pull over and this will create even bigger problems as large parking areas will be needed. Transport costs will increase dramatically and this will push up the price of construction. Readymix concrete has a“shelf time of +- 3 hours while in the back of the truck. Nico concludes that businesses will suffer serious financial losses as a result of these regulations being passed and has strongly urged the Depart- ment of Transport to revise the regulations so that they are in line with the NDP. “We are happy to work with Government and law enforces to make our roads safer without leading to the detriment of any person, company or the economy as a whole.”

employment’ as outlined by the regulation. How people may be carried and who may be carried needs to be spelled out. Regulation 292 in which speed limits will be reduced to 40 km/h in urban areas, 80 km/h outside urban and 100 km/h on highways where they pass through urban areas is also being challenged. According the objection heavy vehicles do not operate within their optimal efficiency at 40 km/h

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