By: Lungisa Somtombo
“Germany taught me that there are many streams of waste that I need to focus on. “These words were said by Wastepreneur Phumeza Ceshemba of Afri Waste Group after she went to Germany for a Manager Training Programme.
Ceshemba added that in Germany she was very fortunate as they visited 13 companies and one of them was a waste company.
“The waste company recycles everything from plastic, cardboard, glass and they are converting waste to coal. I was impressed,” she said.
Speaking to BCM News on how she was selected to go to Germany, Ceshemba said they were sent invitations by the Eastern Cape Development Corporation (ECDC) to apply for the Manager Training Programme.
They then went for interviews where Germans came to East London to interview them and she was part of five companies that were selected from the Eastern Cape.
“We were three companies from East London, the other two were from Port Elizabeth.”
Afri Waste Managing Director explained that the trip was four weeks long and it was from October 27 to November 27.
Ceshemba said she always knew that Germans focus on quality, she wanted to learn about the process efficiency of waste and she learned that.
“I learned a lot from Germany, their programme included theory and practical. We learned HR issues, business skills and how to run a business efficiently.”
Further, Ceshemba added that they learned how to do business with the Germans. She saw how eager the Germans were to do business with South Africa as they also taught them about exporting.
“The most important thing for me was learning that Germans do sorting at source, using automated recycling methods where a person buys a bottle of soft drink and recycles as they go out of the shop,” Ceshemba explains.
Expressing how she feels about the opportunity, Ceshemba said she feels humbled and proud to have done something different, like being exposed to an international market.
She concluded that they were the first delegation from South Africa to be invited to Germany and the Germans are looking forward to taking the next delegation from South Africa. “I want to advise businesses to do their research, embrace the opportunity and learn as much as possible.”