On Wednesday, 8 March 2023, Absa donated 130 refurbished laptops to CapaCiTi, the digital skills accelerator of the UVU Africa group.
Absa is excited to be a part of a solution that will address this digital deficit the youth face as technology has changed the way students learn; in the workplace and educational settings, laptops have become a requirement, and while this is the case, many students cannot afford them. The handover, which took place in Salt River, in Cape Town, was met with much excitement.
Absa’s relationship with UVU Africa is one that is ongoing, and we recently partnered with CapaCiTi on two initiatives that aim to empower the youth through work experience and learning. The primary objective of the first initiative is to close the Salesforce skills gap and provide candidates with thorough knowledge and a practical understanding of cloud computing and Salesforce. The second programme, which commenced in January 2023, will look at critical skills, such as software development, and software testers and candidates will go through six months of learning and a further 12-month placement period at Younglings Academy and at Absa.
The majority of the candidates who are part of these initiatives come from economically underprivileged areas, so the laptops donated will be used to support them in their journey. “In everything we do, our aim is to be an active force for good. This donation will ensure that we enable the candidates’ learning by providing access to laptops during weekends and in the evenings. This is something that they didn’t have before and it will allow for continuous learning and code writing without interruption,” says Johnson Idesoh, Absa Group Chief Information and Technology Officer.
Over the past decade, UVU Africa has made a continued effort to build a future-fit, inclusive society through technology and innovation. They dream of a future where all Africans can become part of the digital economy and are proud to partner with organisations that are tackling the digital skills gap in South Africa and putting youth at the heart of the solution.
Ian Merrington, Group Chief Executive Officer at UVU Africa, believes this is the perfect time for this handover to happen and the laptops received will be allocated to the CapaCiTi Cape Town campus, CapaCiTi Braamfontein campus, in Johannesburg, as well as Khayelitsha Bandwidth Barn hub in Khayelitsha Township. “Our partnership with Absa is one that we believe will continue to yield great results, providing learners with the tools to continually grow in their learnerships and ultimately giving them the opportunity to hope again. There’s nothing that is as impactful as making a difference in someone’s life. This equipment isn’t just any equipment, but a new chapter to unlocking new possibilities,” says Merrington.
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