 |
CSI focus areas: Socioeconomic development
Through its socioeconomic development focus, the nedbank foundation is working to address unemployment by helping people to improve their skills. A particular area of focus is on the training of women and the youth, while enterprise development through funding and seed capital also enjoys significant support. The following are some of the projects supported in 2008:
The Hope Factory (Gauteng)
Through the Hope Factory unemployed people are able to enter a 15-week training programme in life, business and technical skills, which teaches them how to sew, make patterns and do beadwork and other crafts. After training, the graduates move to the formal sector or become entrepreneurs or work in the job creation division of The Hope Factory, where they make corporate gifts that are distributed across the country, and even get exported to the United States. The Hope Factory received a R400 000 contribution from the Nedbank Foundation.Furniture Technology Centre (KwaZulu-Natal)
FurnTech is a worldclass service provider to South Africa’s wood products and furniture industries. Nedbank donated R540 000 to send 30 learners on the 15-week skills programme in wood machining, upholstery and wood finishing.Intsika Beneficiation Project (Gauteng)
Intsika Skills Beneficiation Project is a section 21 company established in 2004 in response to the alarming rate of unemployment. It provides training in jewellery design and manufacturing to historically disadvantaged individuals. A donation of R100 000 was made to Intsika to purchase tools and equipment for jewellery-manufacturing hives.The project has trained more than 60 learners, some of whom are now employed by various jewellers in Eastgate. Learners are recruited by these jewellers for their outstanding skills and Intsika helps to place them in jobs or assists them to start their own initiatives.
The success of the project speaks for itself, with learners referring others to the project following their own positive experience.
Nedbank Youth Centre: Construction and ICT Training (Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal)
The Nedbank Youth Development Programme in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal offers skills training, business education and financial management training to out-of-school and unemployed youth. It currently boasts more that 600 graduates in fields as diverse as construction, plumbing, electrical wiring, carpentry, computer skills training, and hospitality and catering.
 Return to top |
