53 rural KZN schools get connected

ON FRIDAY, July 10, Port of Richards Bay handed over telecommunications tools to 53 schools in the Zululand area, during a ceremony held in collaboration with Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA), Dumbe Municipality and the Department of Education.

Among other dignitaries, KZN MEC for Education, Peggy Nkonyeni, and Dumbe Municipality Mayor, Cllr BM Nxusa attended the event.

A two-fold ceremony in Paulpietersburg provided the platform for the handover as schools, the community, executives of Transnet, and members of the KZN Department of Education met to celebrate the occasion and to showcase the career opportunities available in the maritime industry.

“We have brought the Port of Richards Bay to the community,” said Nkululeko Molefe, Corporate Affairs Manager for TNPA’s Port of Richards Bay.

“Today is all about social development. We will be handing over three-in-one telecommunication tools to 53 schools in the Zululand district, and providing information to learners at the career expo, where they can learn about the opportunities available to them in the maritime industry,” he said.

Molefe mentioned that TNPA’s Corporate Social Investment (CSI) activities had shown that a significant number of rural schools still lacked basic telecommunications infrastructure which then deprived learners of access to quality education.

In total, TNPA has invested R1.78 million to provide 200 schools in Vryheid, Dumbe and Uphongolo in the Zululand District with telecommunications infrastructure, training and support.

This will give these schools access to printing, scanning, phoning and faxing – basic infrastructure that does not exist in some rural areas.

Senior Manager for Stakeholder Relations and Sustainability at TNPA, Thandi Mlangeni, said that the career exhibition provided an opportunity to reach out to communities where future leaders could be found.

“We are exhibiting to thousands of learners, to ensure that they can make informed career choices. It is also about creating a pipeline for the business. There is so much untapped talent that we can unearth in the hinterlands as well as in rural areas,” she said.

Port Manager for the Port of Richards Bay, Preston Khomo, said that he was delighted to be a part of the initiative, and grateful to the learners who want to know more about the maritime field. “Communication is one of the most important things for schools to succeed. This project is about filling that gap,” he said.