MBABANE – MTN Eswatini has extended an internship opportunity to Human Resource Management graduate, Bongani Dlamini, who successfully completed studies at the Vaal University of Technology (VUT), in a training program offered through Eswatini College of Technology (ECOT).
Dlamini, a Bachelor of Technology (BTech) graduate, from Mhlatane in Mankayane, was born 38 years ago, a healthy child without any visible physical challenges.
However, when he was four-years old, he got severely ill, a condition that left him differently abled, and confined to a wheelchair.
Speaking about his condition Dlamini said: “I grew up with this challenge and my parents tried all they could to assist with little success. One of their major setbacks was limited by financial resources, which made it difficult for me to access specialized treatment and care”.
Consequently, Dlamini started his primary school at St. Joseph’s Primary School, at 14 years – seven years later than most children.
Determined to turn around his life for the better, he completed his high school education in 2008 at St. Joseph’s.
Thereafter, Dlamini spent two years applying for admission in some of the local tertiary institutions, without success. In 2012, he decided to upgrade his Mathematics at Emlalatini Development Centre (EDC) through distance learning because it was convenient for him. Once he had scored a better grade, he applied and was accepted to study at Eswatini College of Technology (ECOT) in 2013 and resumed studies in 2014.
Throughout his life, Dlamini said he aspired to find a decent job to improve quality of life for his family, particularly his parents who both depend on social grants.
“This aspiration that has kept me going for years and I have been patiently waiting for that moment to come,” he explains.
Dlamini continued: “Even though I have been actively applying for jobs in the past three years, I have been turned down. Not once, but multiple times,”
“When I arrive at the interview venue, it has become normal to see shock written all over the interviewers’ faces, and often I can’t help getting a sense that they would not give me chance to add value through my human resource management skill,” said Dlamini.
He further explained that this kind of reception has made his job-hunt extremely difficult. But because he does not easily give up, some of his friends advised him to post his story on Facebook, which caught the attention of MTN Eswatini who engaged him.
Subsequently, Dlamini was given an opportunity to participate in MTN Early Talent Development Programme “Umtsentse”, starting from May 13, 2021, just ahead of his birthday month.
“My arrival at Mahlalekhukhwini House, on my first day of internship was the best feeling I have ever had in a long time,” he says. At the close of his first day at MTN, he summoned the energy to break the news of his internship to everyone who cared to listen.
“Because I was warmly welcome from day one, MTN has felt like my second home with amazing and supportive colleagues all around me,” he said.
“My considered view is that MTN is a very inclusive environment for differently-abled people like me. They have parking reserved for differently-abled persons, a good ramp for my wheelchair when entering the building, wide passages, and the elevator gives me access to many offices in the building, including the CEO’s office,” he said.
‘Employing differently abled graduates is not lowering the bar’
Bongani Dlamini appeals to employers to hire differently abled graduates if they are qualified to perform. He said there is still a significant gap in support for differently abled students when they graduate.
“As differently abled graduates we can’t help but feel left out in the dark after graduating. However, we are eternally grateful for companies like MTN for allowing us to wake and go to work – a feeling Dlamini says gives him inexpressible satisfaction, he said.
Dlamini emphasized that employing differently abled graduates does not mean that companies should lower the bar.
“If employers want the best talent, they need to consider all available graduates, including differently abled graduates,” he says. “Often, being differently abled does not mean you cannot do the job.”
In agreement with Dlamini, MTN Eswatini Head of Human Resources, Happy Mavimbela, argues that human resources professionals have a role to play in shifting negative perceptions about differently abled people and bring humanness into work.
Mavimbela explained that diversity and inclusion is at the heart of MTN Eswatini’s organizational culture.
“We believe that differently abled persons contribute to the richness and diversity of our organization,” she said.
She said MTN Eswatini is proud to have been intentional in bringing differently abled persons to participate in the company’s internship program, amongst other initiatives.
