CAPE TOWN-A group of four young women from Masiphumlele can look forward to pursuing careers as seamstresses after completing their internship this year.
The interns took part in The Sewing Café’s Youth Employment Initiative which helps secure permanent positions for participants after a year-long programme.
Athene Knemeyer, the founder of the The Sewing Café, a non-profit organisation (NPO) based in Masiphumelele, said they train participants in sewing and stitching.
The NPO has an after-school sewing club for teens from Masiphumelele High School.
“The Sewing Café has successfully retained four out of five interns who participated in the Western Cape Government’s Programmes and Projects initiative, which concluded at the end of last month (September).
“The programme, which ran from 1 October last year, provided crucial financial support by covering half the salary costs for five interns over twelve months.
“The only requirement was that participating businesses retain at least 50% of the interns at the programme’s conclusion—a target The Sewing Cafe exceeded by offering permanent full-time and part-time positions to four of the five participants,” she said.
Fellow intern Ziyanda Nyumbana said she always held a passion in sewing and loves experimenting with different fabrics.
“Now I’m working with different machines and fabrics. I first joined the learnership in 2023 then I started working at The Sewing Café in 2024 during the month of September,” said intern, Nyumbana.
“Time management is a challenge for me, balancing learnership responsibilities with personal time requires discipline but it taught me valuable skills,” she said.
Athule Ntinjana said she developed an interest in sewing from an early age, but due to financial challenges, she had to put that passion on hold.
“The exposure to different fabrics, how fabric behaves differently under the machine and learning tricks for handling each was very interesting. This internship has been a great opportunity to strengthen my skills, gain industry exposure and learn from professionals. I now have experience working with both hand stitching and industrial sewing machines, and I’ve practised skills such as fabric cutting, alterations and finishing garments,” she said.
Another recent success story came from Someleze Jabe (20) who previously worked at The Sew Café since he was 15 years old.
He has also started a new business, Jabeson Bags.
The young women have shown razor-sharp focus and attention to detail throughout their course, Knemeyer added.
“What makes this success story even more remarkable is the foundation laid before the internship began. All five interns completed a six-month basic sewing course at The Sewing Café and were carefully selected from that cohort, ensuring they entered the programme with both skills and commitment. There is much to be grateful for in this country—we just need to highlight and celebrate the wins and the people who are taking opportunities and running with them.”
The Sewing Café is eternally grateful for their sponsors for funding their training programmes, Knemeyer said.
For more information contact Athene Knemeyer at info@thesewingcafe.co.za.
