Developing skills across industries will play a key role in developing South Africa’s economy, and training welding artisans locally will increase opportunities within the country’s workforce, says Afrox.  In support of this, sub-Saharan Africa’s leading industrial gases and welding equipment supplier has launched its first tertiary welding facility in partnership with POPUP (People Upliftment Programme), at the new Community House Building Training Centre. 

The aim of the Soshanguve-based facility is to support various technical up-skilling programmes with an emphasis on welding as an in-demand route to sustainable career. Johann Pieterse, Afrox Business Manager for Manufacturing Industries, says: “Quality training and development arise from good training infrastructure. The Afrox team leaped at the opportunity to build a top class training facility to accommodate 12 students.

“This will be supported by our developed training programmes, focused on skills development that will contribute to a formal qualification.  We kicked off the first programme recently and look forward to certifying our first trainees in July 2016. The class of 2016!

“Going forward we will establish continuity by training instructors and partnering with like-minded organisations, such as the Southern African Institute of Welding, to ensure that we continue to develop welders trained to international welding standards, creating jobs across sub-Saharan Africa.” Enhancing local skills is the driver behind Afrox’s skills development programme, which has now been extended to schools to attract and inform pupils of the advantages of a technical career and encourage more young learners to take welding further at a tertiary level.

As a result, Afrox has partnered with the Department of Education, supporting its Technical School Recap programme under Mechanical Technology. The Afrox-supported strategy is focused on de-mothballing welding facilities, equipping them with advanced technology equipment and upskilling educators to facilitate training.

To date Afrox has upgraded and equipped 14 technical schools nationally, trained more than 40 teachers in the four main welding processes and communicated the importance of technical skills qualifications at selected launches in the major provinces.