• Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi says that the province will train 6 000 unemployed youths to install solar panels.
• This initiative forms part of a larger R1.2 billion project to ease the loadshedding burden on the province, which is the most economically active in South Africa.
• Lesufi said in February that Gauteng would begin installing solar panels on hospitals, clinics and schools.

For anyone looking for more information on this, like how to apply and how much it pays, you can check out our follow-up article here.

In efforts to address loadshedding wreaking havoc across the infrastructure and economy of Gauteng, the province’s premier Panyaza Lesufi says the local government is planning to train 6 000 young people in the installation of solar panelling.

According to Lesufi, the 6 000 candidates must be from the Gauteng region, and they will receive an undisclosed monthly stipend during the training.

A press statement from the provincial government of Gauteng indicates that the training of the youths comes through a new partnership between the province and the Manufacturing, Engineering and Related Services Sector Education and Training Authority (merSETA).

Premier Lesufi is expected to address the media later today (4th May) to further unpack his plans for the training of the solar technicians, alongside merSETA CEO Disa Mpande and representatives from the South African Photovoltaic Industry Association (SAPIA).

Earlier in the week Lesufi told the media that Gauteng would be, “announcing 6 000 young people that are going to be trained just to install solar panels. We are also announcing an extra 6 000 that are going to be deployed to clean our townships, informal settlements and hostels. So we are trying our part as government.”

The Premier says that all from Gauteng who are unemployed are free to apply, with more details expected in the address later today.

Many have criticised the premier and his lofty plans for the province that began in earnest when he came to power late last year, especially because the plans seemingly don’t come with timelines.

These plans include using drones and epanic buttons to assist with the province’s enormous crime rate, the hiring of “crime wardens” across the city’s most at-risk areas, and building a foundation to begin lessening the impact of loadshedding across the most economically active region in the country.

In February Lesufi said the provincial government was urgently looking for ways to address loadshedding in Gauteng, similar to how the Western Cape was managing to reduce certain stages of power cuts. The province is expected to invest R1.2 billion towards this initiative.

That same month, Lesufi announced that an 800MW solar farm was being planned for the Merafong region, in the West Rand. The construction of this farm was said to begin “in the next few weeks.” Now in May, we have yet to receive any update from the premier on this project.

Construction of the solar farm was to be followed with “…the installation of rooftop solar panels in government buildings, especially hospitals, clinics and schools,” Lesufi added. This would definitely require more skilled labour, perhaps why Gauteng is set to train the unemployed youth.

[Image – Photo by Ricardo Gomez Angel on Unsplash]