The Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs, Mrs Edna Molewa, launched the groundbreaking R300 million Groen Sebenza project last week Saturday, the 8th of June. The launch formed part of Environment Month celebrations at the Pretoria Botanical Gardens.
Spearheaded by the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI), the innovative Groen Sebenza project is aimed at developing skills and bridging the gap between education and job opportunities in the biodiversity sector.
Speaking at the launch the Minister said, “This is definitely a landmark project that DEA, SANBI and our partners are proud to be pioneering and using to play a leading role in contributing towards building a pool of young, vibrant, capable and confident professionals for South Africa’s biodiversity and natural resource management sector. It is the Department of Environmental Affairs’ hope that the effective implementation of the incubator concept will have a catalytic impact on skills development and job creation.”
The CEO of SANBI, Dr Tanya Abrahamse said, “This is an exciting time for SANBI and all its participating partners. The Groen Sebenza venture effectively brings into life, the ideals of the vision of a green economy, by mobilising for and engendering the involvement of young people, in the management of biodiversity, through job creation. We are confident that this project is the right step towards addressing the skills shortages in the sector and more significantly, it will help to diversify the sector. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all partners for a shared vision, for shared value.”
The partnership is made up of organizations from all tiers of government, NGO’s and the private sector, of which the Wildlands Conservation Trust is one. Some of the other partner organisations in KZN include Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, D.U.C.T. and the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal.
Groen Sebenza involves the placement of 800 unemployed youth in skilled jobs in the local biodiversity sector for a period of two and a half years. The project focuses on training, mentoring and workplace-based learning with the objective of building a pool of young and capable professionals for South Africa’s biodiversity sector, which aims to boost job creation in the green economy.
Strategic Manager at Wildlands said, “We’re really excited about this initiative. As an organisation we have always believed in nurturing potential and giving passionate people an opportunity to shine. These funded positions will give us the chance to add depth to our projects and give our knowledgeable team the opportunity to share what they’ve learned in the field. Education is important but without mentorship this knowledge takes a long time to take root.”
463 of the Groen Sebenza interns commenced with the programme on 02 May and the remaining participants will begin in the course of this month. A month into the project, the young participants and the 33 Groen Sebenza partner organisations say they are thrilled to participate in the initiative, which will equip them with the work experience and skills to secure permanent jobs in the biodiversity industry.
Wildlands had 32 interns start in on the 2nd of May and another 6 in June, working in a variety of positions including Ecologists, Geographers, Grant Administrators, Communications Officers, Environmental Educators and Community Development Workers.
The R300 million project is sponsored by the Development Bank of Southern Africa’s Jobs Fund. It is spearheaded by SANBI and is a first in the local biodiversity industry.
WILDTRUST (registered as the Wildlands Conservation Trust - IT No: 4329/1991/PMB)