The digital revolution has officially found a home in Hazyview. By bringing digital skills training to the source, Mpumalanga’s brightest minds no longer need to leave their hometowns to access tech skills.
Brilliant young minds in Hazyview, Mpumalanga, faced a difficult choice, either they leave home and family to chase career opportunities in the big cities or stay behind where access to digital skills training was limited.
In September 2024, CAPACITI, in partnership with the Good Work Foundation, started a digital revolution by launching a satellite tech hub designed to equip local youth with in-demand digital skills, to support the booming local BPO industry. Just one year later, young graduates are now driving innovation in local businesses, fuelling job creation, and strengthening their communities. What began as a training hub has become the heartbeat of a growing digital revolution.
Digital skills are strengthening local businesses
The hub’s true measure of success is not in the number of certificates issued, but in the calibre of graduates that are strengthening the digital capacity and operational efficiency of local businesses in Mpumalanga.
Winnie Nhleko, a former CAPACITI candidate, now interning with VillageUp Impact, is just one of many success stories showing how small businesses are reaping the rewards. “Before the hub,” Winnie recalls, “hardly anyone in my community even knew what data analytics was.”
Armed with the digital skills she gained through the hub, Winnie is transforming how VillageUp Impact manages its HR systems by minimizing administrative errors in payroll and leave tracking. This is freeing the team to “focus more on supporting programs and initiatives instead of getting stuck in operational challenges.” In the world of community development, this kind of efficiency translates directly into better service delivery. Across Hazyview, CAPACITI-trained talent, like Winnie, are driving a quiet digital revolution by helping local organizations harness data to make smarter decisions.
This is the transformative impact of CAPACITI’s “Impact@Source” model that is showing what can happen when homegrown digital professionals apply their skills to community-based organisations, the benefits are multiplied.
The numbers are in, and the impact is real. 66% of candidates from the first Data Analytics cohort in Hazyview have already secured fixed-term career opportunities.
Validating the “Impact@Source” model
At its core, “Impact@Source” is an economic inclusion model that develops digital talent locally and ensures the benefits stay within the community. Instead of exporting skilled graduates to urban areas, CAPACITI invests in enabling them to thrive where they are.
The early results are promising. Of the nine candidates in Hazyview’s first Data Analytics cohort, 66% have secured viable fixed-term opportunities, while the remaining participants are being prepared for long-term job placements.
Partnerships with VillageUp and the Good Work Foundation have been vital in achieving this success. These collaborations bridge the gap between training and employment, ensuring that every graduate’s journey translates into economic value for the community. “Our partnerships are designed for meaningful change. We want to see young people in Hazyview not only trained, but actively contributing to the local economy,” says Buhle Myandlu, CAPACITI’s Placement Manager.
Expanding the pipeline of tech talent in Mpumalanga
While each tech training cohort remains intentionally at around 10 candidates, the demand for CAPACITI’s programmes continues to grow rapidly. “We’re expanding into new fields, such as agri-tech, allowing us to match skills training with the unique needs of Mpumalanga while keeping them relevant nationwide,” says Buhle.
This strategic versatility ensures that graduates can contribute to multiple sectors from agriculture to administration, from analytics to entrepreneurship. CAPACITI is focused on building a regional tech workforce that strengthens the local economy from the inside out.
Economic ripple effect underway
A digital revolution is taking place through one skilled graduate, one empowered business, and one partnership at a time. As more graduates enter the workforce, local businesses are becoming more efficient, data-driven, and competitive.
Tech talent in Hazyview is helping organisations modernise processes, interpret trends, and make informed decisions. These capabilities were once limited to larger urban companies but now, they are reshaping how rural economies grow and adapt.
The Hazyview CAPACITI hub is proving that digital skills development can drive sustainable, and inclusive growth. As new cohorts and partnerships emerge, the goal is to continue working with partners and funders that want to expand opportunity, build resilience, and ensure that every success story contributes to a stronger regional economy.
