Durban - eThekwini Municipality has launched the Scooter Empowerment Initiative, created with the aim of creating employment opportunities for young people in the city. The launch took place on Thursday at Sandile Thusi and Battery Beach roads.
The programme was implemented in partnership with private sector partners such as Lularides, Uber Eats and Catalyx. It assists in helping young people to obtain their scooter driving licences for free. This came after many countries moved to e-commerce during the Covid-19 pandemic, which opened a market for delivery services.
The programme began last year, and according to eThekwini Municipality mayor Mxolisi Kaunda, it has restored hope to 27 young people who were housed at the Safer Cities shelters and joined the programme in March.
The programme has trained 200 scooter drivers, who are currently working.
“We are delighted to launch this important initiative during the Youth Month to honour and recognise the contribution made by the youth in the Struggle for freedom. What makes this launch even more exciting is that it highlights the achievement of this important milestone, giving a new lease of life to the homeless people, and ensuring we help restore their dignity.
“You will recall that at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, the municipality established temporary shelters around the city to accommodate homeless people during the hard lockdown and beyond,” said Kaunda.
One of the beneficiaries, Lindokuhle Shobede, even won a laptop for being the top seller as his sales have soared since he received his scooter.
“This initiative has made me a provider at home; I’m so grateful for this opportunity as it has opened doors for me and other youth in the city. To be given such an opportunity is like being given a second chance. I hope they extend such initiatives because they are bound to change more lives. I now make money I never thought I would make, and that is all thanks to the municipality and the founding partners,” said Shobede.
Owner of NUZ Bike Riding School, Langelihle Buthelezi, said he was more than happy to see that the fruits of his labour were paying off. Buthelezi said he left his previous job as a phlebotomist (a health worker trained in drawing and labelling blood according to a given protocol) to start his bike-riding school where he offered the youth free driving lessons. He said he did it out of the goodness of his heart.
“It has been a great journey seeing them doing something with their lives. I started this with just a dream in mind, and that dream was to uplift and empower the youth, and seeing how far it is going encourages me to do more. I can never thank the other partners enough; we still have yet to extend the initiative,” Buthelezi said.
Kaunda said they were targeting homeless people living in shelters.
“Apart from providing safe living spaces for these destitute people, the city was also able to turn these shelters into centres that bring hope and the establishment of a path to self-development for the people who are homeless.
“We also want to thank various institutions that have come on board to equip homeless people with skills in upholstery, pottery, plumbing, welding, carpentry, sewing, beadwork, knitting, visual and creative arts, electrical engineering, gardening, recycling, and computer skills. Some have taken these opportunities seriously and others have progressed towards being self-reliant,“ Kaunda said.
Daily News