FoodForward SA is proud to announce that the inaugural cohort of previously unemployed matriculants who participated in our SETA accredited Supply Chain Youth Internship Programme have successfully completed the course on Thursday, 31 October 2019. The group of five youth spent the past 6 months getting practical experience while packing, defacing and sorting at our warehouse in Cape Town, as well as academic training at our national head office in Cape Town with expert SETA accredited trainers. The curriculum covered inventory management, health and safety, food safety, logistics, as well as mentoring by supply-chain professionals.
Their internship was topped off with site visits to the Woolworths and Pick n Pay Distribution Centres in Cape Town, where the interns got an opportunity to experience the operational environment of our leading national retail distribution partners.
The internship has enabled FoodForward SA to facilitate access to supply chain management for unemployed youth. The interns are provided with incredible mentoring sessions and fantastic employment absorption opportunities. The interns’ employment prospects will be split between our warehouse and one of our food retail partners.
With South African youth aged 15-24 experiencing 55% unemployment in 2019 (statssa.go.za), FoodForward SA’s commitment to youth employment will be reinforced when we shift to the next phase of our Supply Chain Youth Internship Programme with cohort 2 in Cape Town and cohort 1 in Johannesburg due to be launched in January 2020. We eagerly await our fresh group of interns as we strive to be a beacon of hope for the most vulnerable members of our society.