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© AMAZ 'ABANTU
CREATING
JOBS THROUGH
SANITATION
MAINTENANCE
A pilot project that was run in the Eastern
Cape between 2009 and 2013 provided sanitation
maintenance services to approximately
400 schools in the Butterworth district. Half
a dozen franchisee micro-businesses were
created to deliver this, and 36 previously
unemployed people were taught workplace
skills. The pilot project provided a workable
model that was recognised by the Department
of Education as being suitable to roll
out to the more than 4,000 rural schools
across the Eastern Cape with a similar type of
infrastructure. Based on the proven success
of the pilot, the Department of Education has
proceeded in implementing a Phase 1 rollout
to the East London, Butterworth, Dutywa and
Cofimvaba Districts to service 1,200 schools.
Many opportunities lie in applying this Impilo
Yabantu approach to other operational and
maintenance activities within the water and
sanitation services delivery chain throughout
South Africa.