July 2018

ALZENA GOMES, public relations officer, Grain SA

Launched in 2016, the Grain SA Learner Project, hosted annually during the NAMPO Harvest Day, once again proved extremely successful in its third year running. Since its inception, Grain SA’s digital media partners, Lumico, invited local Grade 11 and Grade 12 learners to attend a digital and social media short course hosted during the NAMPO Harvest Day.

The world’s media is ever changing and digital media is not just the future of communication, but also changes the modus operandi of the media landscape, small businesses, corporate enterprises and entrepreneurial endeavours.

Learning a wide range of basic digital and social media skills, the introductory course covers photography, videography, interviewing, social media platforms, advertising on social media and earning an income from the digital media landscape. Following a short coursework stint each morning, learners navigate the Harvest Day grounds and crowds to create video and audio material which are then utilised on the NAMPO digital media platforms. Staying up to date with what is happening in the media world, learners are taught digital media principles and are given smartphones with which to capture those special moments as photos, animated videos or audio recordings.

The purpose of this initiative is to further Grain SA’s involvement in the community. Always looking for ways to uplift, contribute and involve the local community, this Grain SA initiative equips these learners with the skills to assist small businesses and entrepreneurs with establishing a unique digital footprint. By training learners in effective use of social media as a medium, they are also given the opportunity to earn extra pocket money by promoting and advertising their newfound skills back home.

Learners from both Diphetoho Secondary School and the NAMPO Agriculture Combined School have enrolled in the programme and each one became a valuable member of the digital content team during the NAMPO Harvest Day. They practised their newfound skills daily, showed immense progress throughout the week and graduated with pride as the Harvest Day drew to a close.

Publication: July 2018