Three Mpumalanga women are shining examples of the positive impact the Good Work Foundation can have on young people in technologically underserved areas.
Mpumalanga, South Africa (01 October 2024) – Through its IT programmes, the Good Work Foundation (GWF) has not only empowered three women to follow their tech dreams but has also allowed them to become beacons of change in their rural communities.
GWF is a non-profit organisation that is committed to providing access to world-class, digitally empowered education to rural African communities. Its graduates Katekani Whitney Ngobeni, Veronica Ndubane and Tatenda Hlatshwayo are playing their part in carrying out this mission.
Through GWF’s IT programmes, these women have gained the expertise to bridge the digital divide, combat online scams, and inspire others to follow in their footsteps.
For Ngobeni, an IT technician at GWF from the village of Thulamahashe in Mpumalanga, securing an internship at the foundation allowed her to gain workplace experience and learn more about information technology.
Thanks to the training she received at GWF, Ngobeni is now able to assist her community with IT-related issues and help them avoid falling victim to online scams.
“Sometimes they receive calls from criminals pretending to be their bank or click on suspicious links that allow them to be hacked. So, I share what I’ve learned, make them aware that you should not share your private information freely and look out for signs of online scamming,” Ngobeni explains.
Aspiring data analyst Ndubane of Kuhlo in Mpumalanga also found her calling in IT through GWF.
GWF’s Bridging Year Academy programme equipped her with basic skills, such as helping her to improve her typing, while the IT Academy provided more advanced training in coding, the use of biometrics and other computer skills.
Using her newfound expertise, she has been able to help her loved ones and community members by lending a hand to solve problems with computers and handheld devices.
For Hlatshwayo, of Mabarhule (Lillydale B) in Mpumalanga, the journey with GWF was more than just learning computer skills, it gave her a confidence boost too.
“The training also helped me get better at communication. I gained confidence through the numerous presentations we had to deliver, which taught me to step out of my comfort zone and embrace new challenges.”
Starting her journey at GWF as a student in 2020, she later took on the responsibility of an ICT facilitator. Today, she’s expanding her horizons in IT at a different company.
Ngobeni, Ndubane and Hlatshwayo have become financially independent through their participation in the GWF skills training programme and are a testament to the power of education.
Kate Groch, CEO of GWF, emphasises that for the foundation, it’s about more than just providing internet connectivity to underserved communities:
“It’s about becoming a transmission tower, sending graduates like Ngobeni, Ndubane and Hlatshwayo into the world as powerful signals of change.”
Sources: The Good Work Foundation
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