With ISUZU Motors South Africa as one of his first clients, a young Eastern Cape engineer is showing his community how to make money from waste material.
Sigqibo Hlwati grew up in the small village of Goshen outside Komani (formerly Queenstown) before studying electrical engineering at a TVET college. Today he runs his own recycling business.
Paintshop and Environmental Area manager Ncedisa Mzuzu said ISUZU had been working with Hlwati for three years.
“We met Hlwati through the Gogo Selina project when he was a student in training. He was part of the team responsible for repurposing ISUZU waste for building a house as part of this project,” she said.
Recognising how important sustainability is in all spheres, the Environmental Department mentored the young engineer.
“ISUZU was one of his first clients when Hlwati opened his own business,” said Mzuzu. “We worked with him to design and create new waste separation containers. We also ensured that, since he would have little start-up capital, he was able to use ISUZU pallets and wood to ensure he could deliver the right quality waste containers.”
Nurturing young talent
It’s a relationship that ISUZU is continuing to nurture and it dates back to when Hlwati was studying electrical engineering at the PE College in Gqeberha.
“As I was doing my last year I volunteered on a community project in Joe Slovo where we built a recycling workshop out of pallets,” he said. “ISUZU was one of the stakeholders in that project, and after that project, I fell in love with design and alternative building.”
After graduating, Hlwati continued working for the community, “and that got me closer to ISUZU”. He continued to re-purpose waste in collaboration with ISUZU when he opened his own business.
ISUZU’s environmental ethos
“One of my best projects was the opportunity to design and build waste separation bins for ISUZU. This showed me that reusing waste can also take place at a corporate level,” Hlwati said. “Re-using and up-scaling materials can have a huge impact on the economy and unemployment. I am living proof of that. ISUZU is so environmentally conscious, it has been a very good experience to work with them, and it has elevated my level of workmanship.”
He sees endless applications for recycled materials: “You can incorporate what you love most so it does not only have to be in construction, it can also be in other areas. You can easily develop a career in the recycling industry.”
At the same time as reducing youth unemployment and poverty, Hlwati believes recycling is essential for the future of our planet.
Fighting climate change
“We are all in a fight against global warming that is caused (in part) by non-biodegradable waste in landfills and oceans. The more people we have on board, the brighter is the future for humanity and life,” he said. “I work with communities, teaching them how to look for resources within their living spaces, and how to be more independent.”
He also helps with community skills transfer, helped by PE College, Nelson Mandela University and Wismar University in Germany.
“As I am a small enterprise, it is hard to get funding and financial support but the ultimate goal is to leave a legacy in black townships and in South Africa as a whole.”
Hlwati encourages others to open their own businesses using the resources they see all around them.
“Start small, at home, with the waste you have. If your separate and sort it, you will see that this is money that you throw away.”
