Dimakatso Matsonyonyo from Phomolong, Hennenman in the Free State is feeling hopeful about her employment prospects after earning a spot in the Youth Employment Service (YES) learnership.
During the learnership, interns receive stipends of R3,600 per month while pursuing a work-readiness programme with YES. After they complete the programme, they will be allocated into different jobs.
The 25-year-old studied electrical engineering at a TVET college and only got up to her N5 level as she had to drop out to take care of her grandmother who became ill. Matsonyonyo and her four siblings live with their grandmother in her RDP house.
Until May last year, her grandmother was the breadwinner and supported all of them; her mother passed on when she was seven years old. Upon joining Multichoice,Matsonyonyo said the learnership opportunity has been a God-send.
“Before I got the learnership life was very bad and things were taking a toll on my grandmother. Now I am the breadwinner and I can let my grandmother enjoy her [pension] grant. She used to pay for everything, now I pay for everything. From the groceries to my grandmother’s funeral policies,” she explained.
The MultiChoice Group has invested over R40m into the YES initiative. R35m of that money will go towards creating 400 new jobs for youth that have never worked before. The other R5m will go towards creating five 15-minute films which will be housed on ShowMax. The films will profile businesses that have opened their doors to young job seekers.
Matsonyonyo noted that she had received a contract extension for another year. So, she will be working with the satellite television provider until 2022.”I’m so excited! Working with so many qualified people, I’m learning a lot. This was truly by the grace of God.”
