Waste not, want not

Chief executive officer of Signa Academy, Murray Chabant was fed-up with the high rate of unemployment and waste in the City of Johannesburg and decided to create the Green Berets.
This is a programme which focuses on providing skills to the unemployed, creating employment and self-employment opportunities and cleaning up the environment. It was officially launched at Emma Park in Linden on 11 November.
Chabant said his frustration grew over time as he continued to witness the number of unemployed people in the city, yet garbage was found scattered all over the streets. “I was very angry and didn’t feel that this city is a world-class African city,” he said.
He then realised that complaining would not help, however, doing something would completely change the situation for the better. His vision was to see people walking along clean streets around the city.
He believes that it would also help eradicate crime as most young people would be employed. “We live in a beautiful city and a magnificent country that is plagued by a lack of job creation opportunities and pollution. I have always had a passion for cleaning our environment so we can enjoy our cities and our country with pride,” he said.

The Green Berets will shortly commence with hygiene and cleaning education, which will provide a structured learning environment facilitated by Signa Academy.
They will benefit from structured learning and practical experience at no cost, with the expected outcome of people who are primed for permanent employment or self-employment.
A crucial part will be the practical learning, which will take the form of the Green Berets cleaning up urban areas, initially around Johannesburg, then extending to other cities around the country.
“Our Green Berets will be cleaning our streets and urban regions, including the township areas where many of the students hail from. The rubbish collected is then sorted by the students into the various types of recycling waste, which is then collected by recycling companies, who pay for the recyclable product,” he said.
Companies have the opportunity to sponsor the programme and would benefit by creating a stream of qualified, experienced cleaners from which to hire, as well as earning points on their BEE scorecard.
Chabant hopes that his programme will change the way that businesses and unemployed people work together to create jobs and recycling opportunities to benefit the environment.