Civil Engineering June 2022 | Vol 30 No 5

South African municipalities are playing a critical role in the provision of basic human services, such as water and sanitation, to communities across the country. To adequately do this, municipalities require skilled personnel who can provide the correct knowledge in this regard. Growing populations and aging infrastructure are some of the challenges that need to be well prepared for if municipalities are to success- fully service their communities. A shortage of skill within municipalities can significantly hamper the municipalities’ ability to render services to communities, as it has been seen in some municipalities over the years. The Young Engineers “Changemakers” Programme (YECP) is an initiative under the Water Technologies Demonstration Programme’s (WADER), housed within the Water Research Commission (WRC). It is as a result of a Hitachi-DST scholar- ship programme which is a partnership between the South African Department of Science and Innovation (DSI) and Hitachi, a Japanese multinational corporation specialising in high-technology equipment intended at enhancing the capacity of South African engineers in the areas of water and sanitation treatment and service in support of South Africa’s social infra- structure development programme. The YECP aims to build capacity in water sector institutions for innovation and pro- vides opportunities for young South African engineers to partake in testing potential innovative water and sanitation solutions in real world sites. It also targets helping young graduates to gain the necessary skills required to drive municipalities of the future which are sustainable, liveable and builds socio-technical infrastructure and services. The following criteria should be met for candidates to be considered for the YECP: 1) Candidates must be South African citizens or permanent residents; 2) Candidates should be aged between 20 and 35 years; 3) Candidates should be in possession of a four-year engineering qualification from either a university of technology or an academic university; 4) Candidates should have a minimum of 2 years working experience in a municipal environment. The selected candidates are offered a 2-day bootcamp. This gathering is meant to intro- duce the candidates to the programme and its expectations. Various topics such as the work of the WRC, ethics, developments in the area of sanitation, groundwater, industrial ap- plication, the role of innovations in the water sector, role of engineers as changemakers forms part of the learning within the camp. To date, 30 young municipal engineers (93% black candidates) representing 14 municipali- ties across the country have been selected into the programme. 53% of the engineers are female with a 47% male component. The programme has been of high impact in the lives of the participating youth. Four candidates have had an opportunity to travel to the USA for a skills exchange programme with partner institutions. This has allowed them to further enhance the skills that they have been developing here at home. Currently, there are 2 groups of engineers (20 in total) that are still active with the various phases of the programme. The pro- gramme requires a budget of about R1.5m annually in order to meet its objectives and like-minded organisations are encour- aged to support the programme through funding. The WRC has recognised a gap in the sector and has done its best to address it through this programme. What cannot be denied is that water sector institutions require massive skills injection, particularly as the country braces itself for challenges brought about by climate change, among others. Technology and innovation present an opportunity for young people in par- ticular to stand up and be counted among the changemakers in the water sector. Programmes such as the YECP have a positive impact on skills development and capacity building, however greater impact will be achieved through more funding and support to ultimately achieve the vision of driving municipalities of the future. “Young people geared for change as makers of engineering brilliance” To learn more about the YECP programme please contact Dr Manjusha Sunil at manjushas@wrc.org.za www.wrc.org.za