Two pressing needs in Strand – a shortage of sign language interpreters and employment for young people – were addressed when a community-development project was held in Weltevreden last week.

From Monday 11 to Friday 14 May young people from Morkel’s Cottage and Allan Boesak Village attended a South African Sign Language (SASL) course at the Beverly Hills Life Change Centre.

The course was facilitated by DeafNET Centre of Knowledge, an international NPO that aims to disseminate knowledge, expertise and skills to empower all people with hearing loss and related communication barriers on the African continent to achieve their full potential.

Participants between the ages of 16 and 26 completed a National Qualifications Framework (NQF) level-4 Sign Language course, organised by local NPO Oasis – Reach for your Dreams and sponsored by the provincial Department of Social Development.

Facilitators “Bra” Eddie Tsubella and Anneka Manuel taught students to sign effectively in SASL, communicate with people who are hearing-impaired and use finger spelling.

Tsubella, whose father is deaf and who has personal experience navigating the public healthcare system, said the course is important not only for empowering young people but also for assisting the deaf community.

He said even though SASL was declared an official language in South Africa 2023, people with hearing loss still struggle to access basic facilities because interpreters are in short supply.

He hopes that by giving young people the opportunity to learn sign language, they would be able to assist deaf people at local clinics, police stations and courts.

The project served not just as a fruitful stepping stone in making a minority community in South Africa seen, not to mention heard, but also provided the next generation with the invaluable opportunity and skills to change life as it is currently lived.