The Ekuruleni West College’s Boksburg Campus today played host to 40 Chinese companies operating in South Africa for the inaugural South Africa-China Enterprise and Trade Association (SACETA) career event organised in partnership with the Chinese Culture and International Education Exchange Centre (CCIEEC). The event sought to connect young unemployed South African youth from various TVET Colleges with Chinese companies able to offer experiential training and other work opportunities.

Within the group of TVET students were young learners from Ekurhuleni West TVET College, Orbit TVET College in North West Province, as well as Sedibeng TVET College in the Vaal Triangle who have successfully completed 12 months of vigorous training in China and are now back in South Africa seeking full time employment.

This training is the result of a collaboration between the CCIEEC and Energy and Water Sector Education and Training Authority (EWSETA).

“South Africa’s youth unemployment challenge and the need to step up training in various artisanal trades to meet the country’s needs requires co-ordinated and dedicated effort from Government at all levels, public and private sector employers, as well as the variety of stakeholders in the higher education and training environment,” says Mpho Mookapele, Acting CEO for EWSETA “and the training opportunities for young South Africans to China, as well as this event today, are excellent examples of the way in which partnerships and collaboration can positively impact our youth.”

According to Dr Zhilei Lu, Director of the CCIEEC: “The CCIEEC was introduced as an initiative to develop graduates in areas where there is a shortage of critical skills in South Africa.”

“The main purpose was to create opportunities for learners to gain work experience through integrating them in real work learning methodologies that are utilised by China’s top 500 companies,” he adds.

The 150 young people who have benefited from the collaboration between EWSETA and CCIEEC have fared well and face a positive future as a result of the training opportunity presented to them.