BY BANELE MAGONGO
MBABANE– Junior Achievement (JA) Eswatini has today started placing 41 pupils for job shadowing in different companies around the country.
Job shadowing is a term used to refer to the pupils who get placed in different companies in the country, to follow in the footsteps of more experienced workers in that company, and to learn how the job is done. Job shadowing usually lasts for a few weeks.
The placement is as a result of a collaboration between JA and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Energy. The collaboration is to bridge the gender gap in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) careers.
The collaboration was officially launched on Tuesday at Family Life Association of Swaziland (FLAS) offices to formally inaugurate a gender-inclusive project aimed at bridging the gender gap in STEM careers. The initiative is funded by the World Bank under the third component of the Network Reinforcement and Access Project (NRAP) and it marks the inception of another collaboration between the Deputy Prime Minister’s Office (DPMO), Ministry of Education and Training (MOET), and JA to harness the power of job shadowing.
This activity is targeting 41 pupils both girls and boys where they will be attached for 10 days. The students taking part in the Job shadow program are form 4 students who have an interest in the STEM careers.
The companies that will attach the pupils are those who have an interest in the STEM careers. They include Eswatini Energy Regulatory Authority (ESERA), Eswatini Electricity Company (EEC) Eswatini National Petroleum Company (ENPC), Royal Eswatini Sugar Corporation (RES), Illovo Sugar Limited, Total Energies and Eswatini Water Services Corporation (EWSC), and MTN Eswatini. The pupils and companies participating have been taken through the orientation and how the program is implemented. The students have shown enthusiasm on this program, where they are offered a chance to investigate the world of work by spending time with hands on employees already doing what they aspire to be. The experience given to them during the attachment is an introduction to the world of work and provides a context for understanding the connection between school and careers.
