Goya urges companies to utilise training levy
Oageng Batenegi | Tuesday August 23, 2016 15:09
Goya was giving a key note address at the graduation ceremony of VeldBerry Management and Training’s recent batch of the Bullet Proof Manager course participants that was held in Gaborone recently.
The minister said development challenges require concerted efforts and collaboration between the government and the private sector and it was encouraging to note that VeldBerry had recognised this gesture.
“VeldBerry deserves a pat on the back for identifying the skills gap and taking appropriate measures to close the said gaps,” he said. Goya said the world is experiencing unprecedented changes in all spheres of life. He said continuous training is vital to keep pace with the demands of an ever-changing world. “The 21st century world requires an innovative, creative and enterprising human resource,” the assistant minister said. He emphasised that he would like to urge companies to train more Batswana on blue collar jobs. “These are jobs that are manual, labour intensive,” he said.
Goya said there is need to train more people on blue collar jobs because at the moment the country does not produce enough for itself.
“We are highly dependent on other countries for our survival,” he said in relation to blue collar jobs.
Goya added that the blue collar jobs are the ones that produce products that are needed on a daily basis. He also reiterated the collaboration that companies can embrace with HRDC, which has been tasked with advising government on skills that the economy requires and the Ministry of Labour and Home Affairs “who will be in a good position to advise where shortages are” on blue collar jobs.
The minister said the graduation ceremony is a clear demonstration of the desire of Botswana to cope with the demands of a competitive business environment by amongst others addressing challenges of skills mismatch, youth unemployment, poverty and other social ills, which cannot be left on the hands of the government alone.
For his part, Kennedy Mwedziwendira from VeldBerry Management and Training said they are confident as an organisation that the graduates will show good leadership in their respective assignments. He said the graduation is always a special moment for the organisation as they know that they have contributed to the growth and empowerment of young professionals ready for the job market and business environment as a whole. The minister also congratulated one of the young local entrepreneurs, Otsile Oteng, for becoming a partner at VeldBerry.
VeldBerry runs the local franchise of an American management and training company, Crestcom International. Crestcom is said to be represented in over 80 countries worldwide and the training has been received by over 500 companies, which include amongst others Barclays Bank, Bank of America and McDonald. Goya said the training is also penetrating the local market as companies such as Botswana Telecommunications Corporation Limited, Gaborone Private Hospital, Botswana Fibre Networks and Water Utilities Corporation have benefitted from it.