Johannesburg - About 150 000 jobs are being created within the "green economy", the water and environmental affairs department said on Monday.
"In a nutshell we are already implementing a programme
that is beginning to contribute to 150 000 jobs in this financial
year...we are talking about newly created jobs," said director general
Nosipho Ncaba at The New Age business briefing in Sandton.
"The Green Fund is the mechanism for us to at least
make sure that there are enterprises set up to create development
opportunities that are associated with either natural resources
rehabilitation or greening the footprint," she said.
The department was given R800m for the Green
Fund which would contribute to creating 300 000 jobs in the next three
years.
Minister Edna Molewa, who was also at the briefing, said
800 school leavers and unemployed graduates would be recruited to
undergo training in this field.
She said the programme would be for a period of two-and-a-half years and participants would be recruited mainly from rural
areas.
"We will ensure that participants are mentored and
receive relevant experience to gain access into permanent jobs in
biodiversity and the green economy," said Molewa.
