Residents of villages gripped by high rates of youth unemployment recently mobilised local businesses to donate cash and food towards a march by unemployed youth to seek jobs at a local mine.
Taxi associations provided free transport, while local businesses, including foreign-owned spaza shops owners made donations of R100 each for the march by residents in the Ephraim Mogale local municipality in Limpopo.
The area, near Marble Hall, includes the villages of Elandskraal, Morarela, Mbuzini, Regae and Dichoeung.
Unemployed fitting and machinery graduate Nqobile Nkosi, 27, of Elandskraal, joined the scores of youth this week to march on the Afrimat and Lime-Chem mine operating on the outskirts of their village to demand jobs.
The mine has an established milling section for producing powders and a crushing, washing and screening plant to produce aggregate for the iron and steel industry and for the local construction market.
“We raised our voice and we were heard because they have now told us to come and submit our CVs. We are not saying we should all be employed [there]. Even if they can employ half or some of us, we will be satisfied,” Nkosi told Mukurukuru Media.
The results of the Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) for the first quarter of last year by the Statistics SA indicate that the official unemployment rate increased by 1% to 30,1% compared to the fourth quarter of 2019.
Stats SA says there were 20.4 million unemployment young people aged 15 to 34 years in the first quarter of last year.
“We went to ask about opportunities they have for young people and that’s how we realised none of the people from local communities are employed there. It is a disappointment that the mine is near us yet there is no-one working there among us. That is why we invited everyone into getting to enquire on opportunities they could benefit from the mines,” said one of the marchers, Khomotso Matlala, 27.
Matlala said the march brought some hope.
“The manager, Ruan Smit, took our CVs and promised to give us a full scope of the work when tenders are out. He also invited people with business companies to submit their company profiles to show Afrimat what services they can offer. He said this must only be done by the youth in Ephraim Mogale municipality.”
Electrical engineering graduates Mmamaribe Mohlamonyane, 25, of Elandskraal and Moses Nkambule, 28, of Kgobokwane, said they were previously invited to attend an electrical engineering learnership interview at the mine but never heard from them after passing their tests.
This reporter approached Afrimat for further comments but they had not responded at the time of going to print. – Mukurukuru Media
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