JOHANNES Mokobi (25) is a shining star. Nando’s has selected him in the month of January in a campaign where they celebrate and honour young, hard-working South Africans who excel and are making a huge difference in their lives.
He has since launched ‘JM CarWash’ as a fund-raising idea for his studies in web and app development. He believes that, like so many other South Africans, he is working to afford a sustainable life.
We met Johannes on Sunday, February 5 at Nando’s, Maponya Mall to learn more about him.
He said that although he was raised in Soweto, he has since moved to Cape Town. “I am like millions of children who don’t know their biological family since the age of three months. I lived with my adopted family in Dobsonville. That’s where I learnt that you need to do things for yourself in order to survive in life.
“Due to my disadvantaged background and life journey, I fall into the category of people who have not finished their schooling (Grade 12), but that does not mean I am uneducated or uninformed about my surroundings. I have been in and out of college due to financial and accommodation reasons,” he said.
He always wanted to make things simple for people. That is why, in 2015, Johannes started JM CarWash. He had a few ups and downs in getting the project off ground, due to the by-law relating to washing cars on the street. Also, people were concerned about their safety and security with him washing the cars in the streets.
But Johannes persevered.
Teaching himself online, Johannes has managed to develop a few skills in social media management, graphic design, interior design, web/email hosting and web designing/development. He also has some basic knowledge in developing e-commerce websites.
Johannes is planning to sign up at least 1 500 members for monthly packages in his JM CarWash project. He plans to use the car wash as an empowerment programme for other students in need. This will be created to provide part-time or full-time jobs for students who need to fund their studies or to meet their day-to-day needs while studying.
The empowerment programme will be called Carwash for Education. It will introduce online learning and other channels to help unskilled youth to further their studies or learn employable skills.
For more information visit www.jmcarwash.co.za
For free daily local news in the south, visit our sister newspapers Alberton Record, Comaro Chronicle, Southern Courier and Get it Joburg South Magazine.
Remember to visit our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages. You can also email our offices on cvdwalt@caxton.co.za, juliem@caxton.co.za or luckyt@caxton.co.za
Add us on WhatsApp today! Alberton Record: 060 644 5264 Comaro Chronicle: 079 427 8074 and Southern Courier: 079 404 5789.
