Alex arts creative Refilwe Pieterse has started a Young Business Mentorship and Internship Programme that will see young people in Alexandra being mentored on various aspects of business management.
Pieterse said she was currently in negotiations with local businessmen and women in the township to take the youngsters under their wings and teach them the art of running and managing a business.
“The idea is to teach these kids business skills at a tender age so that this concept of starting businesses is inculcated into their minds and blood while they are still young. I believe this is the only way we are going to succeed in building our own African business people who will run future business empires,” Pieterse said in an interview with Alex News.
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Pieterse, who hopes to place more than 50 young people from the township in internships and mentorships by the end of the year, was currently in negotiations on the nitty-gritties of stipends to be paid every week to the interns to cover their travel expenses and other needs.
“I am looking at school leavers without a tertiary education so they too are kept busy and away from certain social ills that are prevalent in our communities today. Mentorship skills could include industries such as motor mechanics, administration, retail businesses and other businesses just to name but a few.”
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To keep the students interested and to encourage them to complete the year-long programme, Pieterse said she was thinking of a stipend of R100 and a further amount to be deposited into the intern’s banking account which he or she would not be able to access until the period of internship lapses.
“This is a way to ensure commitment to the project and ensure that they complete it. They will not access that money unless they have completed the programme,” she said.
Once the programme was up and running, Pieterse said she would start the process of placements.
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