Medupi programme to provide post-construction employment opportunities

13th December 2013

By: David Oliveira

Creamer Media Staff Writer

  

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State-owned power utility Eskom says its Medupi Leadership Initiative (MLI), which is aimed at helping local unskilled and semiskilled workers find employment after completion of the power station project, near Lephalale, is setting the precedent as the largest post-construction work opportunity programme of its kind in South Africa.

Medupi presents the first-ever work opportunity for many of the more than 17 000 workers on site at the largest construction project in the Southern hemisphere. Eskom launched the MLI together with contractors, organised labour, local government and traditional leaders in April in an attempt to extend the benefit of employment beyond the project and to avoid community destabilisation following the project’s completion.

“The MLI is the first project of this nature and scale to be undertaken in the South African construction industry. “It’s a model that could be replicated at other large infrastructure projects,” says Medupi power station project GM Roman Crookes.

The MLI is a collaboration between Eskom and its key partners in the Medupi project, including construction firms Murray & Roberts, Aveng, Alstom Africa, Hitachi Africa, Basil Read, LPS Consortium, Lesedi and Actom.

The initiative comprises job-enabling opportunities, which includes financial literacy courses that provide learners with the ability to manage personal finances; a ‘Drive Your Life’ course, which is designed to help learners take control of their own lives and to understand what options they have once the project is completed; further education and training courses; small, medium-sized and microenterprise skills development, as well as hub expansion to provide incubation office space to entrepreneurs.

As at October 3, 402 workers completed the financial literacy course and 162 completed the ‘Drive Your Life’ course. As many as 960 workers could be enrolled yearly at the Lephalale Further Education and Training College.

The MLI also comprises job opportunity initiatives, including ‘Drylands’, which provides jobs in environment restoration and rhino-poaching prevention; corporate and social investment in construction/refurbishment of community facilities; and local municipality projects in Lephalale.

Sector education and training authorities have committed to cofunding some of the MLI courses.

“The MLI is a voluntary programme that started in the office of Eskom’s CEO and has come to life because of the willing- ness and contributions of the contractors, government, organised labour and local leaders. “It could be the start of a new way of undertaking large construction projects in South Africa,” says Crookes.

Edited by Megan van Wyngaardt
Creamer Media Contributing Editor Online

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