EXXARO SAYS YES TO
YOUTH DEVELOPMENT & EMPLOYMENT
Exxaro has partnered with the Youth Employment Service (YES) initiative to launch two programmes which will see young people from its host communities in Lephalale and Mpumalanga get the skills, support and training they need to take ownership of their futures. Another way we are empowering our people to create impact.
SME.TAX YES Programme
To support young accounting graduates, Exxaro recently partnered with SME.Tax and YES to launch a skills and development programme aimed at upskilling 50 graduate youth from Mpumalanga and Limpopo. To date, 50 graduates, with either a degree or diploma in Accounting, have been recruited from Witbank, eMakhazeni and Lephalale, 78% of whom are women.
Lularides YES Programme
Youth unemployment is on the rise in South Africa, especially in rural areas. To combat this, Exxaro partnered with YES to provide youth with the opportunity to be trained in scooter riding and delivery skills. The youth, who are offered a stipend while they are training, are also assisted to relocate to metro areas, where they are linked up with multiple on-demand delivery platforms to start earning a sustainable monthly income. To date, the average revenue generated by active riders is R7 600 per month, helping the young entrepreneurs to take their first steps to economic independence.
Achievements to date
Youths recruited from five rural areas: Kriel, Secunda, Witbank, Middelburg and Delmas.
Successfully completed the training and are working for Mr Delivery.
Youths from Kriel successfully relocated to Centurion, Soweto and Witbank.
Youths from Delmas and Kriel are in the process of relocating to Centurion.
The Lularides programme is currently recruiting 91 youths from Belfast and 100 more from Limpopo.
EXXARO PLEDGES 100 SCHOLARSHIPS OVER FIVE YEARS WITH CURRO
Exxaro believes in empowering its host communities through access to quality education. That’s why Exxaro partnered with Curro Schools, through the Ruta Sechaba Foundation, to award 20 scholarships to high-performing grade 7 learners every year, for the next five years.
The partnership with Curro Schools started in January 2023, when 10 learners from both the Nkangala District Municipality and Lephalale Local Municipality were placed at Meridian Karino, in Mpumalanga and Northern Academy in Limpopo respectively.
Exxaro worked with the Ruta Sechaba Foundation and circuit managers from the Department of Basic Education to recruit qualifying learners from various schools in our host communities. The selection of learners was done through a baseline assessment in Mathematics and English.
The partnership will fund and support 100 learners over the next five years, covering 100% of all tuition costs, boarding, uniforms, books, stationery, electronic devices and transport.
“This programme has a long-term view to support learners to be better prepared to take advantage of opportunities in the future,” said a proud Mzila Mthenjane, Exxaro’s Executive Head and Chairperson of the Matla Setshabeng – a non profit company, that was formed in 2021 to support community social impact projects.
“This is one of the best opportunities I will ever be offered. It will change my life and the future for my family,” said Dikeledi Salome Moloantoa, one of the first scholarship recipients.
LEEUWPAN’S MATRIC LEARNER PROGRAMME SHOWS RESULTS
Leeuwpan Mine was a key sponsor at the Mayoral Academic Awards Ceremony which celebrated the best performing secondary schools, teachers and matriculants of 2022 across the Victor Khanye Local Municipality (VKLM) circuit.
The awards, which were held at the Mafa Max Motloung Secondary School in Botleng, had a lot to celebrate. The VKLM circuit schools did not perform well in 2021 but in 2022, when Leeuwpan Mine again supported its matric learners, the VKLM circuit improved its pass rate from 52% to 72%.
The prestigious event, which was attended by local government officials, learners and educators, saw Swartklip Combined School being awarded the “Most improved school in 2022” while the Victor Khanye Circuit was recognised as the “Most improved circuit for 2022”. Three learners who excelled in their primary schooling received 100% scholarships from Exxaro to attend Curro Meridian Karino – one of the best private schools in Mpumalanga.
Leeuwpan Mine has long run a successful matric support programme for local schools. This ended in 2019, when Covid-19 forced the mine to focus on providing Personal Protective Equipment and other materials to help schools fight the pandemic. In 2022, the mine once again focused on matriculants by donating 1 000 study books and running its 13-week Matric Saturday Programme, which reached 503 learners and provided two meals per day for all the participants, and stipends for the teachers.
“We will continue to support education and ensure that our learners excel in their educational careers,” said Lorraine Mofokeng, Stakeholder Affairs Manager at Leeuwpan Mine.
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