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By Alicia Mmashakana
The University of Cape Town’s Graduate School of Business (UCT GSB) has collaborated with the Transport Education and Training Authority (TETA) to implement a career-oriented Digital Boot camp programme.
With Over 300 applicants, 15 transport of them have been selected for an intensive skills development course, designed to address critical capacity gaps in the transport sector.
UCT GSB executive education head Jodie Martin said: “At the UCT GSB, we have a responsibility to make a positive difference. Our partnership with TETA means that we are getting closer to our mission as it enables us to impact industries that are there for ordinary South Africans.
“As a business school, our mandate is to make a positive impact and change the lives of not just our delegates, but their families, the organisations they represent and the economy more broadly.”
The boot camp offered prerequisite-free digital training in data analytics, web development, UX/UI design, and other disciplines relevant to the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
In recent years, UCT GSB has also piloted entrepreneurship boot camps, with 75% of Career Leadership Centre alumni finding employment within 90 days.
The University said that with TETA’s assistance, its pipeline for producing world-class digital professionals was viable.
TETA CEO Maphefo Anno-Frempong said: “The transport sector is an enabler of economic growth. Without the movement of people and goods, no economy can thrive.”
Mpho Mbadi, a bus supervisor at Bombela Operating Company, which operates and maintains transport systems, including the Gautrain, is one of the selected participants.
“I applied for the programme to empower myself and improve how I view things, how I manage people, how we operate as a business as this has an impact on the transport sector as a whole,” Mbadi said.
To bring these insights to life, the programme includes international study immersions in Shenzhen in China and Mexico City, Mexico, which are two cities tackling transport challenges in unique ways.
While Mexico City tackles challenges are related to high population density and limited resources, Shenzhen leverages advanced technology to manage similar issues in a rapidly urbanising environment, highlighting how solutions can be tailored to different economic and infrastructural contexts.
UCT GSB has integrated technical training with career guidance and industry networking, striving for sustainable success, including support for entrepreneurial ventures.
The two organisations stated that the year-long course was designed to expand opportunities for young people, particularly those who have faced barriers to employment, and to equip them with the skills needed to participate in an increasingly digital economy.
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