Since 1995, the City of Cape Town’s Adult Education and Training (AET) programme has empowered thousands of employees and helped them to enhance their skills. This has in turn equipped employees with the necessary skills to improve service delivery to residents.

The City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Corporate Services, Councillor Raelene Arendse, visited the City’s Training Centre in Pinelands yesterday, 2 October 2017, to meet some of the students.

The AET programme gives employees the opportunity to improve their literacy and numerical skills, which will assist them in further career development. There are currently 258 students registered for the AET programme.

According to Councillor Arendse, the outcomes-based AET programme helps to foster a positive attitude among staff, improving self-esteem. It further enhances service delivery by giving staff members a better understanding of the value of their contributions in making this a well-run city.

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‘Our employees are our most valuable asset and we need to make sure that they are equipped with the right skills to build a customer-centric organisation, which is a key priority of the City’s Organisational Development and Transformation Plan. We need to continually upskill our employees to ensure that there is continuity of service delivery by making the most efficient use of our human resources,’ said Councillor Arendse.

The AET programme consists of four levels where employees can improve their skills, with various learning areas such as communication and numeracy, life orientation, travel and tourism, and small, medium and micro-enterprises.

One of the achievers is Lumkile Ludziya who joined the AET programme in 2007. Through determination and perseverance, Lumkile passed all four levels and was promoted. He went on to complete his General Education and Training Certificate and is currently acting as a senior foreman within the Transport and Urban Development Authority.

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wie Daniels is another shining example of what can be achieved through dedication and hard work. Currently working as a superintendent in the Informal Settlements Department, Awie joined the AET programme in 2008 as a Level Four student. After completing his General Education and Training Certificate in 2009, he completed his Matric in 2010. He also completed a certificate qualification in Project Management.

Some of the other employees who successfully completed last year’s programme are Leon Field, Fabien Koopman and Faeez Stevens. They excelled in the Level Four learning area of small, medium and micro-enterprises.

‘The employees who enrolled for these learnerships make us proud as they show what can be achieved through hard work and commitment. I would like to commend all employees in the programme for taking charge of their personal development,’ added Councillor Arendse.

One of the many advantages of the AET programme is that it creates a foundation for further skills development, which in turn enhances life skills as it contributes towards knowledge enrichment and self-confidence. Learnership programmes will stand employees in good stead to adapt to a changing working environment.

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