ARTICLE BY: Xolile Mtembu
PUBLICATION: IOL
IMAGE: From left: Lwazi Thobela, Noxolo Mathebula, Vutivi Mthimkhulu and Mampho Makofane – all Good Work Foundation graduates currently working or interning at Kruger Shalati. Picture provided
Young women are taking the initiative and making progress in Mpumalanga's tourist and hospitality industries, and one has even developed an entrepreneurial bent, despite the obstacles set against them in a region where youth unemployment may reach 65%.
Lwazi Thobela, Vutivi Mthimkhulu and Mampho Makofane have overcome the more difficult circumstances that often accompany living in rural villages to become active participants in the burgeoning wildlife economy in and around the Kruger National Park.
The Kruger Shalati private lodge, which occupies the Sabie River in Skukuza and provides converted train carriage accommodation on its famous Train on the Bridge, is a long cry from the poor streets of Mkhuhlu, 40 kilometres away, where some of these young ladies come from.
It is one of several private lodges scattered around the park that engage in local communities by hiring work-ready graduates like these. They are in high demand because of the Good Work Foundation (GWF), a non-profit education organisation.
Thobela's goals to become a chef were put on hold when she became pregnant in her teens - but she has now found a way to manage being a caring mother alongside following her dreams.
She was determined to restart her academic path by participating in GWF's Bridging Year Academy. She then studied hospitality at the foundation's Travel & Tourism Academy, but fate intervened once again.
“Previously, I’d had the opportunity to do chef training in Graaff-Reinet but had to decline because of family commitments. Then, when I was offered a position at Hippo Hollow Country Estate in Hazyview, my child was sick and I could not take up the position.
“When the opportunity to do an internship at Kruger Shalati came up, Madam Tarshine (Mafuyeka, the GWF Hospitality Academy coordinator) phoned me to ask if I am interested – and here I am! I am hoping the internship via the Youth Employment Service will become permanent in time,” she said.
Vutivi Mthimkhulu
Another example of empowerment in action is Mthimkhulu who tends the bar at Kruger Shalati. Her journey began when participated in a short course in hotel management after finishing her BYA post-school training to become more technologically literate, with GWF aiding her with the practical component.
This helped her land a position at Shalati in 2020.
“I was nervous at first, but luckily I had learned how to use a computer at the Good Work Foundation, so I was not starting out with a blank slate. I began as a cashier then I moved on to be a barista – and now I am working as a bar lady.”
However she's taking self-empowerment a step further: owing to her employment, she saved money and acquired a Toyota Avanza, and she's now the happy owner of a taxi.
“I can now firmly say that I am a businesswoman. My mom was so proud of me when I bought the taxi. She said to me, ‘This is why I named you Vutivi – your name means ‘knowledge’ (in Xitsonga), and you have shown that you really are knowledgeable,” said Mthimkhulu.
Mampho Makofane
Makofane is a cashier at the Kruger Station restaurant, run by Kruger Shalati. She has been working there since it opened two years ago, having studied at GWF’s IT Academy and then at its Travel & Tourism Academy.
She said the practicals at different hotels and restaurants gave her valuable experience to help her land her current job.
“I was so happy when I got my first pay cheque. My family are very proud of me for being a breadwinner.”
Her advice to other young women is to keep on pushing through adversity because the future can be bright. She said she sees herself developing new skills and becoming a manager.