Civil Engineering July 2021 | Vol 29 No 6

Civil Engineering July 2021 11 SCHOOL OF CONSTRUCTION ECONOMICS & MANAGEMENT STUDY CONSTRUCTION PROJECT MANAGEMENT AT WITS The School of Construction Economics and Management offers a 1 year full-time or 2 years part-time MSc (Building) programme in the field of Project Management in Construction. Our programme has been in high demand in recent years and we constantly seek to attract enthusiastic applicants to study with us. MSc (Building) in the field of Project Management in Construction Our programme consists of the following courses which we constantly update in line with current industry trends, international best practice, and the latest research/sci- entific knowledge in our field: WHY WITS? We have a strong faculty of lecturers who teach on the pro- gramme. We combine research-active academics with experi- enced practitioners drawn from the construction and engineering sectors and other fields like law, economics and management who service the construction industry. We offer our MSc Building (Project Management in Construction) programme on a block release basis to enable you fit it within your working life. This also provides opportunity and access for people in different locations to join our programme for an exciting postgraduate education experience in the field of construction project management. All of our individual courses within the programme are also offered as short courses. So even if you are not yet ready to do our full MSc programme, you can apply to take a specific course within the programme to acquire knowledge and competence in that particular area and obtain a short course certificate. We welcome short course applications throughout the year. APPLICATIONS Application for admission into our MSc programme is currently open and will close at the end of November 2021. We generally require an Honours degree but we also consider differently qualified applicants. Successful applicants will start at the beginning of the 2022 academic year. For more information and online application: www.wits.ac.za/course-finder/postgraduate/ebe/msc-building- construction-project-management SPECIFIC ENQUIRIES Telephone: +27 (0) 11 717 7652/62/76 Email: Dr. Yomi Babatunde, Programme Coordinator: oluwayomi.babatunde@wits.ac.za Prof. Sam Laryea, Head of School: samuel.laryea@wits.ac.za www.wits.ac.za/cem • Project Management • Construction Planning and Control • Construction Law and Contract Management • Construction Economics & Finance • Construction Safety and Quality Management • Research Methodology • Research Report that promote digital innovation. Such technologies typically lead to improvements in the provision of existing products and processes. Innovation requires constant changing of ways of thinking, learning and working. Through educational institutions such as schools and universi- ties, youth have been catapulted into working with digital tech- nology with the advent of the pandemic, for example. It is fast be- coming a reality that digital literacy and entrepreneurial skills are the most important skills in the 21 st century. Accelerated growth of our economy will be based on the application of knowledge and innovation in keeping with SDG 4 and 9 respectively. South Africa’s growth opportunities in a technology and innovation environment will help address unemployment. We often refer to economic emancipation as a work in progress that can be facilitated by digital entrepreneurship. It serves as a means to empower and therefore emancipate under-resourced and vulnerable people. In addition to education in digital technology, youth must be educated in entrepreneurship, which is the key to success through self-efficacy. Another significant limitation in our country is affordable access to the digital economy, starting with bandwidth. We have yet to get all of society connected to the internet. Data is no longer a luxury but a necessity, and access to the internet with smart devices will open up opportunities for innovation, possible employment, learning and entrepreneur- ship in the digital economy. Furthermore, connectivity allows economic transcendence by allowing youth from all walks of life to connect. POTENTIAL FOR YOUTH AS SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURS Social entrepreneurship is a business that generates profits while seeking to generate positive social impacts. Social enterprises have benefitted almost 1 billion people in nine countries while providing goods, services and employment to the most marginalised groups. Leaders are required to create supportive environments with enabling entrepreneurial policies and programmes so that youth social entrepreneurship can leverage the energy and creativity of young people as agents of change. Some examples of social enterprises include impact investing, corporate social investment initiatives and conscious consumerism. Impact investing intends to combine financial gains with social and environmental benefits which can be considered an extension of philanthropy. Creation of investment in a non-profit organisation, and investment in clean technologies in healthcare, education, energy and agriculture are typical examples. As such approaches gain increasing attention in the business world, they will certainly provide opportunities for youth to apply their minds unconventionally. Such initiatives assert the notion of “conscious capitalism”, encapsulating a socially responsible eco- nomic and political philosophy that increases the possibility of an egalitarian, just and inclusive society. Vishaal Lutchman SAICE CEO vishaal@saice.org.za