Social Employment Fund program brings hope for the future.

The Social Employment Fund program was launched in 2022 in conjunction with SerDev – the Sernick Group development company, Temong – the Sernick Group’s preferred BEE partner, The Impact Catalyst and funding from the IDC.

Realeboa Mokhethi, a Temong team leader, says the program brought great excitement to the 50 farmers in Virginia, Free State, who are part of the program. The farmers expressed their gratitude for the opportunity for recovery it has given the 1100 trainees during this challenging time following the COVID-19 pandemic.

The resourceful Virginia group worked with 50 trainees who completed the planting of their allocated land with produce. They then decided to arrange a meeting with the Director of Land in Matjhabeng. The group identified unused land next to a chicken farm where they had already cleared 4 ha and planted about 2 ha of sugar beans. Their aim is to utilise 7 ha where they will be planting the following:
4,5 ha – sugar beans.
1ha – potatoes.
0,5 – cabbage.
1ha – mix of pumpkin, watermelon, baby marrow.

The total land they are seeking is about 15 ha and will be shared between the following companies:

1. Sekho Rise and Shine
2. Maboha Trading
3. Moleboheng Kgali

Not only has this program helped people from Virginia, Welkom and other neighbouring areas, but also as they expanded, more temporary workers have been hired to assist with the workload.

Temong, who is subcontracted by The Impact Catalyst, employs 1100 temporary workers and 38 team leaders for a 6 month period. These workers are employed for two days a week over this period to acquire additional skills and better their chances of future employment. The areas and organisations that benefitted from this program are Ignite and Revive (Kroonstad), Green Kid SA (Kroonstad), Edenville community, Sernick, The National Poultry Development Agency (Lejweleputswa, Mangaung, Thabo Mafutsanyane and Fezile Dabi), Bethlehem through their LED officer Jabulani Tshabalala, as well as the Tier 3 farmers in the Sernick Developing Farmers Program located in the Free State as well as North West. The Moot in Pretoria was the last group to join the program.