R60 million for new buses Bank offers free internship for students

From August students will also be able to enrol in programmes covering retail and investment banking, software development, engineering, and data science

Johannesburg - Standard Bank is launching a new virtual internships initiative to help students gain practical skills that mirrors work in the world of banking. There are no due dates to the programmes, registration for the internship is free for students, and they are open to all.

The first self-paced programmes, which only take roughly five hours to complete, offer video-guided training for skills in job searching, business communication and networking, personal branding, interview preparation, and more. Once completed successfully the students receive certificates they can add to their resumes.

From August, students will also be able to enrol in programmes covering retail and investment banking, software development, engineering, and data science. Head of youth development at Standard Bank Maymoona Ismail says many young individuals take up opportunities without a clear understanding of the industry or what skills the jobs require.

“The programmes aim to bridge this gap between education and industry. We want to empower young individuals with the right skills required in the modern world of work,” she said.

For more info visit the website https://bit.ly/SBWorkReadiness.

Killer gets two life jail terms

Johannesburg - The South Gauteng High Court recently sentenced a 28-year-old man to two life terms for murder, 15 years for possession of an unlicensed firearm and three years for possession of unlicensed ammunition.

Cleveland police spokesperson Captain Johan Jordaan said the man, Malibongwe Zakwe, was also declared unfit to possess a firearm.

“On 2 August 2020 he shot and killed a man and wounded another at a house in Malvern. The case was handed to Detective Warrant Officer Patrick Raletsemo for investigation, who later received information that Zakwe was hiding in KwaZulu Natal.

Johannesburg - The City of Joburg has allocated R60 million to Metrobus for the purchase of new buses in the coming financial year.

Transport MMC Funzela Ngobeni says the purchases are part of a longer-term strategy to renew the fleet. He says planning for procurement of the new buses will begin in the current financial year.

“The lead time between placement of an order and delivery of the new buses from manufacturers will be between six and 10 months,” he says.

International standards indicate that a bus can have a lifespan of 12 years; however, owing to financial challenges Metrobus finds itself with a number of buses operating in excess of 15 years.

Ngobeni states commitment to seek a solution in bridging the gap between the funds requested and the funds allocated, including al- ternative funding mechanisms and revenue-generating initiatives.

“Owing to budgetary constraints affecting every government sphere, department and entity, the changes I oversee at Metrobus will have to be incremental but I am confident that we will make progress in improving Metrobus services,” Ngobeni says.

Metrobus has just concluded a successful three-year bus refurbishment programme. By the end of June, the entity had refurbished 105 buses against a target of 100 buses, at a cost of R49.4 million, against a project budget allocation of R49.8 million. During the 2021/22 financial year, 35 buses were refurbished, translating to R19.7 million spent against a budget of R20 million. These buses are currently operating most of the Metrobus trips. A further R22 million has been allocated in the new financial year to refurbish additional buses.