By Rajnish Singh
Pretoria [South Africa], August 21 : As a result of collaboration between India and the South African government, the Gandhi-Mandela Centre of Specialisation for Artisan Skills has been providing vocational education and training to meet the training requirements of young people as well as the artisan skills requirements of South Africa.
In the presence of President Cyril Ramaphosa and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish the Gandhi-Mandela Centre of Specialisation for Artisan Skills (GMCOS) was signed on July 26, 2018, in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Thus, the Centre is the practical manifestation of what the leaders of the two nations had in mind when they envisioned the promotion of high-quality vocational education and training to address the training needs of young people as well as the artisan skill needs of South Africa.
"As of now, there is a great demand for trainers to come to this institution to learn the very skill sets at this institution, to take it forward into the industry. There is a big big demand for the skill sets that are here. and we at the High Commission are hoping that we can further fund this institution with more machinery," Sudhir Mannie, Commercial Assistant, High Commission of India (Pretoria) told ANI.
"It has been very very successful till date and we really really hope that it can be further replicated throughout the whole of South Africa," he said.
Moreover, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has appointed HMT (International) Limited (HMT(I)), a Government of India Enterprise under the Ministry of Heavy Industries, to implement the project.
"A total of USD 3 million worth of machines, equipment and high technology equipment was provided by the government of India which includes drilling machines, welding equipment and more," J. Naresh Kumar, Manager (Projects), HMT (International) Ltd, (A government of India Undertaking) told ANI.
"So, this is a skill development project where the South African youth from different communities ..they are getting trained, they are provided with required technical skills and knowledge and transform their lives," he said.
People who are getting trained here are getting a lot of jobs in various industries as employees. Even this institute has become an institute of choice for many employers to hire quality, highly skilled apprentices and technicians, he added.
This year's BRICS is under the presidency of South Africa and is organising the first face-to-face summit since 2019 in Johannesburg from August 22-24.
South Africa became Chair of BRICS on January 1 under the theme: "BRICS and Africa: Partnership for Mutually Accelerated Growth Sustainable Development and Inclusive Multilateralism." Notably, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the BRICS 15th Summit at the invitation of South African President Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa.
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