Accenture Botswana recently launched the “If I Can, You Can” Graduate Empowerment Programme to interns in Palapye. The program, which was facilitated by Visionary Grooming Empowerment Programme (VGEA), was first launched in Gaborone early this year.
The workshop, held at Botsalo Hotel, was aimed at helping interns tap into opportunities and tactics that will help them jump-start their careers. It was attended by over 20 participants from different professions, mainly Agriculture, Information Technology and Communications in the Serowe/Palapye catchment area.
“We understand and know from experience that job-hunting without success can be very stressful,” said VGEA’s Coordinator, Keoikantse Sehuhula.
“The idea behind these workshops is to help young people, especially interns, realise their full potential and, most importantly, we want to embed a ‘never say die spirit’ in them,” she elaborated.
Sehuhula further explained that the overall goal of ‘If I Can, You Can” is to empower interns and graduates through mentorship programmes so as to make them more relevant to the current job market. A wide range of topics were covered during the workshop, including how to write a cover letter, Curriculum Vitae as well as general job searching techniques and strategies.
“I was about to give up on job hunting, but armed with this new information, I will give it my best. I have basically realised what I was doing wrong in my approach,” said Kabelo Moletsane, one of the interns who attended the workshop.
Accenture Botswana, a management, consulting and outsourcing company, intends to spread these workshops to the rest of Botswana, and the next one is expected to be in Francistown in the near future. Furthermore, plans are at an advanced stage to incorporate personal financial literacy into these workshops where the focus will be on budgeting, savings, as well as credit management where possible.
The rationale behind addition of financial training is that if interns have a better understanding of their finances, they will be able to manage it more efficiently now and in the future as such training will furnish them with information needed to assist them make intelligent financial decisions.
VGEA is a non-profit organisation founded in 2004 and formally registered in 2007. It is run by volunteers and provides a mentorship program to young people aged between 18-30 years in both urban and rural areas. VGEA has successfully run mentorship programs in both Junior and Senior Schools and is actively involved in charity organisations such as Pudulogong Centre.
