In September 2017, the LIV Training Department was launched, and we met the team of Added Advantage Academy cc. We then had to establish our Computer School first to start this partnership, so as a start we sent all our receptionists to the Added Advantage Academy Campus in Morningside in 2019, for the End-User Computing Qualification. This qualification is an Introduction to the PC, Introduction to Windows, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint, and Emails. Two of the LIV school leavers also attended this course at the Morningside Campus in 2020. These courses were made possible with funding that we had received from Trans Africa International Telecommunications (EMCOM).
During the COVID-19 Lockdown, we built eight classrooms in our Training Centre at LIV Village, Durban. One of these was designated for our LIV Computer School. In 2021, EMCOM made our dream come to fruition when they donated fifteen computers for the LIV Computer School. We made contact again with Sheryl and Pippa from Added Advantage and a few weeks later God opened a door when Added Advantage were awarded a grant from the MICT SETA to offer the Systems Development Level 5 (Web design and programming) Learnership.
Our first group of students started on 1 October 2021. After attending the LIV Computer School for the first six months of the Learnership, they ventured into the Workplace environment to complete the Work Integrated Learning part of the course.
On 13 March 2023, we were very excited to host our first group back at the Training Centre and to celebrate with them on their Graduation Day. Two of the students were able to give their testimonies of how this course had changed their lives. It gave them an opportunity to have a better qualification to search for a job and to now be able to provide for their families.
Nokwanda Mbuyazi has also completed her Moderator and Assessor’s course and is now employed by Added Advantage Academy as a lecturer. She is currently back in the LIV Computer School where she is lecturing the End-User Computing Course to a group of the LIV Moms and Staff.
A big thank you to Sheryl and Pippa for investing their time and effort into this programme and dreaming with us. Thank you to Merenciana Kahanda for travelling all the way to LIV every day to lecture and guide these students. To our Pastoral team – Jono, thank you for investing in the lives of each of these students and teaching them to walk in the footsteps of Jesus. Another big thank you to Deon and the team from EMCOM for providing us with the equipment to make a difference in the lives of others.
More companies and individuals can get involved in this amazing programme. Help us to make a change. Please contact annemeyer@liv-village.com should you have any queries or suggestions.
