Youth unemployment in South Africa is a pressing issue, with Stats SA reporting a staggering 62% unemployment rate among young people.
In response to this challenge, FoodForward SA launched our Supply Chain Internship Programme in 2019, offering unemployed youth the opportunity to gain valuable skills in warehousing, stock management, and logistics.
The latest group of interns – cohorts 14, 15 and 16 – celebrated their graduation at the end of October after completing six months of intensive training.
The programme, which is sponsored by Woolworths and training facilitated by DQ Staffing Solutions, combines 70% practical, on-the-job training with 30% academic learning.
This approach equips the students with real-world experience while providing them with skills for a career in supply chain management. Over the past five years, the programme has seen remarkable success, with 64 interns graduating and a 100% success rate.
Currently, 23 former interns are permanently employed by FoodForward SA in various positions within the organisation, and five of the last group of graduates were offered temporary contracts.
Speaking at the Cape Town graduation ceremony, FoodForward SA Managing Director, Andy Du Plessis said the programme was launched to address youth unemployment in South Africa.
“The internship programme was started for two reasons – the huge amount of youth unemployment in South Africa, (Statistics) SA confirmed Youth Unemployment is sitting at 62%. The second reason was to create a pipeline for FoodForward SA for our growth nationally,” said Andy.
“We don’t only use the interns in the warehouse. Once they have completed their six-month internship, we place them elsewhere in our organisation. It’s an important pipeline for us to ensure that as we grow, we maintain operational efficiency throughout our organisation.”
Andy also expressed his gratitude to Woolworths for their ongoing support.
Katy Heys, General Manager, Community Inclusive Justice Initiative at Woolworths also shared some words of encouragement for the graduates: “There’s going to be a lot of challenges, the best advice I can give you is the one thing no one can take away from you is your attitude. Have a positive attitude wherever you end up. Your present circumstances don’t determine where you can go, they merely determine where you start.”
A huge congratulations to all our graduates. Your hard work and commitment have paid off, and we’re excited to see what the future holds for each of you. Here’s to new beginnings and a bright future ahead.