EPWP to look at providing graduates with experiential training
The Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) will look at providing graduates in the social sector with opportunities to gain experiential training while they are still searching for employment, said the Deputy Minister of Social Development Ms Hendrietta Bogopane-Zulu.
Closing the three- day EPWP Social Sector Conference that was held earlier this week in Pretoria, Deputy Minister Bogopane-Zulu said young people who have completed their Social Work studies must be given opportunities in EPWP to gain experience while looking for employment.
“We must also be able to use the EPWP to assist professionals and graduates who need to complete certain hours of practical work in order to graduate and find work,” Ms Bogopane-Zulu said.
She made it clear that while the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure must continue with its role of coordinating EPWP nationally, her Department (Social Development) will drive the implementation of EPWP projects in the social sector space.
“We are going to change the face and the design of the EPWP in the social sector space…gone are the days where our community members in the Programme have to live from hand to mouth…we are going to restore dignity and hope in the lives of our participants,”
She said one of the things the Department will prioritise is the training of participants in the Programme. “We are going to provide our people with training that will lift them out of poverty and joblessness. We want to ensure that when our participants exit the EPWP, they have quality skills that they can use to find work and/or become entrepreneurs who will provide work in their communities,” Deputy Minister Bogopane-Zulu stated.
She also stressed that her Department will work very hard to ensure that persons living with disabilities participated fully in EPWP social sector projects.
Concluding her closing address, Ms Bogopane-Zulu said her Department was currently working on exciting EPWP projects that it will soon launch. “We are working with young women in some of these exciting EPWP projects that we will be launching soon.”
The conference was attended by various public bodies that are participating in the implementation of EPWP in the social sector and was opened by the Minister of Social Development, Ms Lindiwe Zulu.
Some of the key resolutions that came out of the conference include:
- Review current programme design and make necessary adjustments to encourage pathway model.
- Facilitate the development of sound business plans for social sector programme.
- Formalise a convergence coordination platform with other EPWP Sectors.
- Establish the role of Infrastructure in supporting social sector projects in relation to social infrastructure.
A brief background on the EPWP
The Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) is one of Government’s medium to long term strategies to reduce unemployment and alleviate poverty through the creation of work opportunities using labour-intensive methods. The EPWP is implemented in four sectors namely: Infrastructure, Social, Environment & Culture and Non-State. All spheres of government and State-Owned Entities are expected to implement the programme.
The EPWP Participants (beneficiaries) work in different projects like Community Work Programme (CWP), Early Childhood Development Programmes, Home Community Based Care Programmes, Extra School Support Programmes, Working on Fire, Working for Water, Roads Maintenance Projects, etc.
Through various skills and training that the participants receive from the EPWP, they (participants) stand a better chance to enter the formal job market and/or become entrepreneurs.
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