500 young Capetonians graduate into BPO opportunities

More than 500 young Capetonians have completed a skills programme designed to help unemployed people with little or no previous business process outsourcing (BPO) experience enter one of Cape Town’s expanding employment sectors.

According to the City of Cape Town, the graduates were celebrated earlier today, on Wednesday, 30 September, at an event attended by the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Economic Growth, Alderman James Vos.

The CapeBPO Skills Programme is funded by the Jobs Fund, BankSETA and the Western Cape Government’s Department of Economic Development and Tourism (DEDAT), and facilitated by BPO Skills Academy in partnership with CapeBPO.

The programme is aimed at connecting training directly to employment opportunities, giving participants industry-specific skills before they enter the BPO workforce.

The City said 44 803 net new international-facing BPO jobs have been created in Cape Town since July 2021.

It added that more than 10 000 jobs were created in each of the past three financial years, with 11 496 recorded during the 2025/2026 financial year alone.

Vos said the figures were significant not only in terms of job creation, but also because of the opportunities they represent for people entering the workforce.

‘In each of the last three financial years, more than 10 000 jobs were created in the metro, with 11 496 in 2025/2026 alone. Those numbers are important, but what matters to me is what they represent. Behind every job is someone earning an income, gaining experience and getting the opportunity to build a career,’ he highlighted.

Cape Town has developed a sizeable contact-centre industry serving customers in markets beyond South Africa, with the sector drawing on the city’s multilingual and English-language talent base.

The City pointed to the Ryan Strategic Advisory Offshore CX Confidence Index 2025, in which industry executives expressed confidence in South Africa’s English-language talent pool, commercial property market and broader industry ecosystem, among other factors.

CapeBPO CEO Clayton Williams described the graduation as both an achievement for the participants and part of a broader effort to connect skills development with employment.

‘Today is about celebrating both achievement and opportunity. These 500-plus young people have completed an accredited programme and have been connected directly to employment opportunities across both the international and domestic BPO markets,’ said Williams.

He added that the organisation’s focus was on creating pathways into the sector for young people with limited or no previous BPO experience.

The programme is supported by the City through its work with CapeBPO, while DEDAT, the Jobs Fund and industry partners are also involved in the skills-development initiative.

Vos said the approach was intended to link investment and sector development with the skills required by employers.

‘We identify the sectors where Cape Town has a competitive advantage and strong potential to create jobs, and then work with industry to understand what is needed to grow. We go after the investment, help build the skills pipeline and connect Capetonians to the opportunities that follow,’ he said.

Michael Mann, Managing Director of BPO Skills Academy; graduate Kelly Petersen; Alderman James Vos, Mayoral Committee Member for Economic Growth; graduate Jaydee Jacobus; and Clayton Williams, CEO of CapeBPO. Picture: CoCT/Facebook

The City also highlighted its Youth Skills Accelerator Programme as part of efforts to prepare more young Capetonians for employment opportunities in sectors identified as having growth potential.

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**Picture: **City of Cape Town / Facebook

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