Get connected at the Paarl East WCG eCentre

The scenic town of Paarl is situated 60km from Cape Town. Paarl, located in the Cape Winelands, is well-known for its rich cultural history and beautiful natural landscapes. Paarl is the third-oldest city in South Africa and is known for its mountain or “Paarl Rock”. The large granite rock formed by 3 rounded outcrops makes up Paarl Mountain and is the second-largest granite outcrop in the world.

With a population of 285 574, many citizens are affected by unemployment and poverty. Teenage pregnancy, gangsterism and other social ills still plague the Paarl community. Paarl is mostly a farm-worker village strongly reliant on farm and factory employment. Most citizens in the community are farm workers (packers), and others work for retail outlets, business owners and other employment sectors. Some of the needs in the community include housing, employment, food security and education.

The Paarl East WCG eCentre, which opened on 8 August 2013, is in a Thusong centre and serves about 6400 members. It’s divided into 2 rooms, one for users and the other a training centre. The eCentre can accommodate 20 users and 16 training candidates. The eCentre provides relief because all the services are free, and they also help with searching for vacancies, typing CVs or any other documents, and scanning and making copies. Students use the eCentre to do their school projects with the assistance of the staff.

The eCentre has grown a lot since its opening, and the staff has helped many community members with skills which led to employment. According to the eCentre manager, Lozanne, they’ve tried to give training the easiest way for members to remember. “We’ve tried using things we have in our homes like cupboards and clothes, for example and we reference these as “files and folders”. We make use of folders (cupboards) to save our loose files (clothes) in.

Some of the success stories in the Paarl East WCG eCentre include the story of Samuel, who received his eLearning certificate and is now permanently employed. Members who were addicted to drugs also received guidance, support and skills from the eCentre and are now drug-free to help others who are struggling with drug abuse. They are also involved with Violence Prevention through Urban Upgrading (VPUU), an organization that aims to transform low-income neighbourhoods into safe and sustainable communities.  The eCentre also gives basic training to children with disabilities to help them understand the computer basics.

Services:

• Free internet access
• Email access and assistance to create emails.
• Free printing of a maximum of10 pages per day
• Basic Informal Computer Course Training
• E-learner Online Computer Course Training
• International Computer Digital Literacy (ICDL) Computer Course Training
• Online University applications.
• Online bursary and financial aid (NASFAS) applications.
• Typing CVs and other documents.
• Online job searches and applications.
• PAY internship program applications.
• Register students for the new school year.
• Basic training for Grade 10 & 11(School Learners)
• Basic computer training for people with disabilities

Contact the eCentre:

Email: Paarleast.ecentre@gmail.com
Telephone: 0714905086
eCentre manager: 071 818 0170 (Lozanne Magerman)
Regional Coordinator: 076 127 0919
Email: ntuthumabandla@yahoo.com

Operating hours

Monday-Thursday
08:00 – 13:00 (adults)
13:00 – 16:00 (School Children)
eCentre Closes at 15:00 on Fridays

Visit the WCG eCentres website for more information.