RUSTENBURG HERALD – RUSTENBURG – The Moses Kotane Local Municipality (MKLM), in partnership with the Department of Education and various private stakeholders - Sun City Resort, Siyanda Bakgatla Mines, Northam Zondereinde, Pilanesberg Platinum, and Anglo American Mine – Amandebelt - successfully held a third annual career exhibition.
More than 4300 local Grade 11 learners attended the expo at Sun City.
The four-day event, held in September, brought together young enthusiasts from 43 local schools, industry leaders, employers, higher education institutions and mentors to inspire, educate and nurture the next generation of game changers.
Themed “Eradication of poverty among rural learners through empowerment and guidance of rightful career choices”, the event gave the learners an opportunity to visit various exhibition stalls and seek relevant career picking guidance that will help them decide on the correct career paths.
According to Moses Kotane Local Municipality’s Subject Education Specialist, Mrs Ntleleng Alfreda Ramasodi, the key objectives of the career exhibition is to empower and guide learners to choose rightful and relevant careers, and to expose them to various tertiary institutions, Universities, FET colleges, Departments, and organisations so their knowledge is broadened.
“Our aim is to enlighten and capacitate our learners with career related information that they may not be preview to. We want them to be able to apply for admission at tertiary institutions, apply for bursaries, and know where to knock for employment opportunities post graduating. This is an initiative that was launched in 2021; we aim to continue to support it annually to ensure our learners are not deprived of the opportunity to gain the knowledge that will contribute towards an improved future,” Ramasodi said.
To fight the high unemployment rate, Tebogo Mokgejane, Sun City’s SED and Stakeholder Engagement Manager, encouraged learners to take advantage of careers according to their strengths but also to be aware of what careers are in demand. “Learners also need to know that performing well is a key factor to qualifying for their desired fields of study."
Speaking during the launch of the Career Exhibition, Moses Kotane Local Municipality’s Mayor, Cllr Nketu Nkotswe encouraged the learners to gather as much information as possible and ask questions so they leave the venue loaded with the relevant information that will contribute towards making informed decision. “We would like to extend our gratitude to all the stakeholders who continue to support this initiative and positively contribute towards paving the future of our youth. Let us continue to hold hands together in eradicating poverty in our communities and promoting education as one of the key factors that will improve our economic growth,” cllr Nkotswe shared.
