At the beginning of 2021, CapaCiTi Digital Career Accelerator launched the #LoanFree campaign as an offer to ease the difficulties faced by graduates in the harsh job market. CapaCiTi announced this offer to immediately cancel the contingent student loans held by its 2018, 2019 and 2020 cohorts.
The Digital Career Accelerator recognised that companies around the world are struggling to navigate the ongoing pandemic and certain industries have shut down. Those that are operating are doing so at limited capacity and have put a hiring freeze in place. Thus impacting CapaCiTi graduates and their ability to meet their financial obligations. It’s been a few months since CapaCiTi launched #LoanFree, a bold bid to ease the difficulties faced by graduates in the current job climate. This is what some of the graduates who were part of #LoanFree have to say.
Lulamela Delihlazo, who is currently working at Bilco/LearnQuick Academy, states that “When the loan was cancelled, I was happy. It meant that I was free of debt. It also made a huge difference in my life because when I joined the programme I was not working. I feel that it has opened doors for me because I am now working with the help of the programme and its recruitment process”.
Mbuyiseli Voyi, an intern at Khayelitsha Bandwidth Barn as IT Support, states that the #LoanFree campaign gave him a chance to save money so he can study for another course and expand his career towards cybersecurity and programming.
When asked what this meant to have her loan cancelled, Hlobisile Mahlangu, who is currently employed by The Foschini Group – Infotec as a Software Tester, stated that “With the current pandemic and people getting laid off, I was able to close the financial gaps that my family and I were experiencing. It eliminated all of the worries that are associated with the current situation in the world and that has made me feel at ease.”
Under #LoanFree, the Digital Career Accelerator negotiated an agreement with its stakeholders to cancel the contingent loan currently held by its previous cohorts. All graduates that had paid their loans were reimbursed in full. Lulamela Delihlazo sends her appreciation to the donors and says, “I would like to say that the funders must continue funding the programme. They are doing a great job. Making sure that the youth of South Africa get the necessary skills required in the job market”.
Hlobisile Mahlangu ends it off by thanking the entire CapaCiTi team and more, “To the funders and CapaCiTi team, thank you very much for such an amazing opportunity. I had lost hope in finding employment and as you can imagine, that can affect a person greatly emotionally and mentally. You made a difference in my life and for that, I am truly grateful. To the future students, CapaCiTi will take care of you in all aspects, and you can be assured that you will succeed in life if you are hardworking and committed. My experience has taught me how to be a great asset to the company and community. Furthermore, it has pushed me to be highly driven by success and has strengthened my passion for technology. Have a positive outlook in life and everything will fall into place. Continuous learning is the name of the game!”.
CapaCiTi Digital Career Accelerator is the skills development arm of the Cape Innovation and Technology Initiative (CiTi), a Non-Profit Company striving to build a future-fit, inclusive society through technology and innovation. CapaCiTi’ s vision is to enable inclusive growth of the digital economy by ensuring a supply pipeline of future-fit, skilled employees with relevant digital skills matched to industry demand.
CapaCiTi has a dedicated team that supports you throughout the process and cares about its candidates. If you are ready to take the first step to your digital career, join our database by following this link.
