The Khanyisa Project

The Khanyisa Project is a relatively new non-profit organisation that has developed, as a result of start-up funding from the British Council, out of a partnership between Middlesex University, NMMU, Siya Sebenza and EastCape Training. The overall objective is to raise the level of employability within the Nelson Mandela Bay area, or put more simply to enable more unemployed people locally to successfully find work.

As a result of the initial labour market research undertaken by NMMU it very quickly became apparent that there was a chronic shortage of drivers for certain employers. Having explored a number of avenues as potential solutions Ena Richards, the director of Siya-Sebenza, brought Dorothy Tobias to our attention.

She had graduated from Siya Sebenza’s employability training programme a year or so previously and had used this as a springboard to start up Carries Driving School. We contacted her with a view of offering driving instruction job seekers involved in the various Khanyisa Project training schemes.

Dorothy was keen to provide this service and in the last few months over 30 job seekers (IS this true?) have completed their driver training with Carries Driving School. The outcomes from all this are that, firstly, we are able to provide a trained pool of drivers for those employers struggling to fill driving vacancies. Secondly, we have armed a number of unemployed people with a skill that makes them considerably more employable.

Finally, as a result of the extra business from the Khanyisa Project, Carries Driving School has been able to expand its capacity and is now able to provide Code 10 instruction for the driver training in larger vehicles. So overall a positive outcome all round.