Premier Zille and Media24 launch partnership

11 July 2017

Earlier Premier Zille and Media24 CEO Ms Esmaré Weideman officially launched the partnership between the Premier’s Advancement of Youth (PAY) internship programme, and WeCan24, a Media24 initiative.

The PAY project, launched in 2012, creates opportunities for matriculants to gain workplace experience in Government. Since inception, the programme has provided 3 700 internships to young people. This year an additional R27 million has been made available for the project.

Through this new partnership, WeCan24 will train some of the PAY interns interested in the field of media and journalism for the duration of the year. Subsequent to the year-long training, some of the successful interns will have the opportunity to intern with some of Media24’s enterprise development partners, such as Double Dutch Media.

The media interns will also produce content for the Western Cape Government’s internal publications, such as the Better Together magazine.

Premier Zille said: “When we launched the PAY project, our vision was to create a springboard for young people who would otherwise find it difficult to access opportunities of this kind. We wanted to provide access for young people to internships in government, and the general working world. On-the-job training helps to prepare them for their next step. The partnership with Media24 will go a long way in achieving that”.

Premier Zille said that the media should play a pivotal role in building any democratic society.

“Society relies on what reporters disseminate to make informed choices. While today is about creating opportunities for young people in the world of media – it is more than just preparing you to get another job. Men and women have dedicated their lives to the struggle for media freedom and free speech. Journalists therefore have a responsibility to report accurately, fairly and ethically. I encourage our interns to use this opportunity wisely and learn as much as possible.”

The current partnership will run for a year, with the possibility of future extensions.

Issued by Michael Mpofu, Spokesperson for Premier Helen Zille, 11 July 2017