Gijima's partnership with the University of the Western Cape (UWC) will see 39 Gijima employees earn a Bachelor of Commerce (BCom) Honours degree this year.
The partnership was established in 2011 between the higher education institution and the ICT company, and is accessible to all Gijima employees, says Gijima interim CEO Eileen Wilton.
"The programme is targeted at any Gijima employee who does not have a BCom degree but has the necessary experience," she explains.
To qualify for the programme, the university conducts assessments on each applicant. Gijima covers all academic costs for students based in Cape Town who are able to attend lectures at UWC, says Wilton. Gijima employees not based in the Western Cape can attend classes at the company's head office, in Samrand, Johannesburg.
"To improve the skills base of the company, Gijima embarked on an intensive skills analysis exercise, which allowed us to identify a high number of experienced ICT professionals, who, through the principles of recognition of prior learning (RPL), could upgrade their existing qualifications into a BCom Honours qualification," says Wilton.
The programme has benefited both Gijima and its employees by raising the skill level of people in an industry that generally has a lack of skilled resources, Wilton says.
"This is also an industry that has few opportunities to further develop the skills of individuals, so this programme has been very effective. The direct effect for Gijima is that our graduating staff has a better ability to understand and report on the needs of our clients, thereby delivering a superior level of service," Wilton notes.
James Njenga, head of the Department of Information Systems at UWC, adds that the department is proud to have been involved with Gijima in this unique programme.
"Not only did the programme improve marketability of the individuals concerned, it also empowered these employees to contribute to the future competitiveness of Gijima and indeed the country," says Njenga. The programme is the first of its kind for UWC and Gijima, according to Wilton, with both looking forward to similar programmes in the future.
"We are very pleased with the results of this first joint collaboration with UWC, and we will explore alternatives and the future together," Wilton concludes.
The graduation ceremony for the first group of participants took place on 20 September at UWC.
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