DURBAN - The Wentworth Youth Development Centre, south of Durban, was officially opened on Tuesday, during Social Development Month.
KwaZulu-Natal Social Development MEC Nonhlanhla Khoza opened the centre, as part of highlighting the work done by the Social Development portfolio.
The construction of the centre was undertaken by the provincial government in response to a request for such a facility by the Wentworth and Bluff communities.
Khoza said the communities had pleaded for the youth skills centre, which they said would save the lives of young people, who were struggling to overcome a number of social ills, such as crime and abuse of drugs and other substances.
“The area is also plagued by crime and young people lack skills, making it difficult for them to be employable,” Khoza said.
The Department of Social Development, together with the eThekwini Technical Vocational Education and Training College, set out to fulfil the dreams of parents in Wentworth, Bluff, and Lamontville by constructing the centre, which will provide much-needed skills to the youth.
The young people who will get an opportunity to study at the centre will also be exposed to work environments as the centre is adjacent to industries.
The department has invested millions of rand in the state-of-the-art centre, and training there will help to reduce the high rate of unemployment.
“Youth enrolled in the centre will be skilled in electrical engineering, business management, plumbing and catering, to mention a few,” Khoza said.
The Social Development portfolio includes SA Social Security Agency (Sassa) the and National Development Agency.
Among others, the department is tasked with fighting drug and substance abuse, providing child care, care for the elderly, care for people with disabilities, care for orphans whose parents died of HIV and Aids, and the disbursement of social grants, which they do through Sassa.
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