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The Business Skills & Development Centre continues to deliver quality, affordable training to disadvantaged young adults, mainly women. In total, 102 students were trained during 1999.
Our students come from diverse backgrounds but all are township residents and the majority come from the Eastern Cape. None of our students have the financial resources to access post school training, without which they stand little chance of becoming meaningfully employed. The focus of our training remains the personal development of each individual to her/his fullest potential in the short time they are with us. Training
We were able to train a class of 15 students in General Secretarial Skills for the Dept of Labour, from July to December. This was very successful, and we hope to continue working closely with the Dept next year. In addition to our 5½ month Office Administration training courses, we implemented a one year Business Practice course to develop the students to a higher level, especially in communication, computer and typing skills. The Travel & Tourism Training course extended into a second module and 12 out of the 15 students were accepted onto Galileo training. Galileo is one of the most commonly used international booking systems in the tourism industry and will enhance the students’ chances of employment in travel agencies. Organisational Development
The organisation underwent a thorough evaluation of its educational programmes towards the end of the year, facilitated by a trainer from Standard Bank Head Office. It allowed us the objectivity to rigorously interrogate our training and to re-define our focus and project goals in relation to market demands and NQF requirements. In addition, it served as an excellent motivating and team-building process and opened up and has improved intra-organisational communication channels.
Teaching staff attended a training workshop on unit standards, outcomes-based assessment and issues related to the NQF and SAQA. This was facilitated by National Access Consortium W Cape staff, and provided the teachers with invaluable working knowledge for re-orienting their teaching according to SAQA guidelines.
Developing and maintaining synergistic partnerships remains essential to the advancement of BSDC and its work. These partnerships range from those with individuals who give of their time and expertise in the furtherance of the aims of the Centre; to those with corporates who involve themselves in and add value to the training; to those with educational and academic institutions; and to those with NGOs in cognate fields. Sustainability
Finally, BSDC is facing the reality of having to become more financially sustainable in a lean funding environment for NGOs. Strategies are being devised for income generation through outsourcing training and commercially viable short courses. In addition options for long-term funding are being considered and international donors sought. Conclusion
BSDC would not be able to offer the services it does, or be at the forefront of development in education without the hard work and dedication of all its staff and the unpaid support of the Directors. It is heartening to reflect that, in the thirteen years of BSDC’s operation, we have trained over 1,200 students and that approximately 80% of them have become employed in the business environment. Job creation and employment is one of the biggest challenges facing South Africa today, and BSDC is proud of the role it has played over the years in training those with no hope to become productive, economically active citizens who are able to contribute to the growth of our country
Daniel Johnson
Chairperson
It is with pleasure that I present my report on the thirteenth year of activities of our Centre. Attached hereto and to be read in conjunction with this report are the audited Annual Financial Statements for the twelve months ended 31 December 1999. Finance
BSDC operated at a surplus of R77,712 for the twelve month period under review as against a surplus of R19,666 in the previous year. Our accumulated funds at 31 December 1999 stood at R103,530. Financing the Centre during the period was again enormously difficult and fundraising continues to be an urgent and ongoing priority. I am happy to report, however, that we have secured funding to finance our operations well into the year 2000.
We continue to be funded on the basis of private sector sponsorships. No direct state assistance is received for our core programmes, although we did conduct a Secretarial/Office Administration course on behalf of the Department of Labour from July – December 1999. Sponsorships are canvassed by us from business and funding communities and other supportive organisations. Students are called upon to pay only a nominal fee for their training.
We continued to run our Office Administration courses again this year and also introduced a one year pilot Business Practice course for 20 students. In addition, for the second successive year, Travel and Tourism training was conducted in partnership with the National Access Consortium, who funded the training. This consisted of 2 modules: a general introduction to travel and tourism from January to June; and a module comprising more specialised subjects, including Galileo, from July – December 1999. Thirty students enrolled for the introductory course and, of these,15 were accepted onto the second module. It will be interesting to see how these students are absorbed into the travel industry.
In toto, 102 students were trained by BSDC this year. Sponsors
I extend our very grateful thanks to our sponsors whose names are listed at the end of this report. Without their support the Centre would simply not be able to continue. The climate for fundraising in South Africa continues to be extremely difficult and this aspect of our activities absorbs an inordinate amount of staff time. We believe we should receive financial assistance from the State and are continuing our efforts in this direction.
Don Collier
Hon. Treasurer