FATO’s training interventions, support rural economies

It has been seven months since the Forestry and Agriculture Training Organisation (FATO), formerly SAFCA NPC, was established as an independent entity to continue the legacy of excellence in developing and implementing training programmes for the forestry sector.

FATO’s all-women board is run by its executive director, Pamela Naidoo and two non-executive directors, Monia Engelbrecht and Kerry Davies. The trio have a combined track record of over 50 years in the forestry industry’s skills development space and are extending their services to the agriculture sector.

Naidoo managed the capacity development arm of the Southern Africa Forestry Contractors Association (SAFCA) for 15 years and is well-known for her hands-on and professional approach to stakeholder liaison and quality training interventions.

In July 2023, the SAFCA board decided to “unbundle” its training division, SAFCA NPC. SAFCA and SAFCA NPC were already set up as separate entities, with Naidoo managing the latter. It was an easy step forward to an amicable separation, and FATO NPC was born.

Pamela Naidoo

Naidoo began her human resources learning and development career in the public sector 30 years ago, with the last 15 years at SAFCA managing the contractor capacity development programme.

She is a highly qualified education, training and development practitioner (ETDP) and was selected by the FP&MSETA to attend a Leadership Development Programme through Regenesys Business School and MIT in Boston.

A member of the FP&MSeta’s Quality Assurance Committee, Naidoo is integral in promoting quality among forestry training providers. She works closely with grower companies and the Forestry Industry Training Providers Association (FITPA) to ensure that quality is never compromised.

Naidoo says, “The ultimate objective of skills development initiatives is to improve the lives of forestry workers. Beyond this, it is about playing a part in ensuring growth and transformation within the forestry industry”.

Through working with grower companies, FATO ensures  continued skills development of their contractors, with the focus firmly fixed on learners and their employment within forestry contracting companies.

Monia Engelbrecht

Englebrecht has 15 years of financial management and systems development experience working with small to medium companies.

She has a passion for helping others and worked in the Johannesburg office of SAFCA for seven years before the split. During her time with SAFCA and SAFCA NPC, she developed a love for the forestry sector. She gained nsight and knowledge in managing grant and training funding, amongst other things.

Kerry Davies

Davies has been part of the corporate forestry sector for 30 years and is a recognised expert in learning and development. She served on advisory boards and quality assurance committees for forestry courses at tertiary institutions. She also served on various tertiary and industry education committees and boards.

Davies’ expertise spans adult education and training (AET) to tertiary forestry education. She was instrumental in driving the development of unit standards and qualifications in forestry where nothing was in place, thus standardising the industry training standards. She also managed a successful full-time AET programme, which saw many illiterate learners maturing into literate forestry supervisors.

Davies retired from corporate life in July 2023 and is channelling her passion for helping others in the learning and development fields through FATO.

Scarce Skills

The modernisation and mechanisation of forestry operations highlighted the need to upskill supervisors in the new work environment.

While at SAFCA NPC, Naidoo liaised with stakeholders and applied for and received discretionary grant funding from the Fibre Processing and Manufacturing Sector Education and Training Authority (FP&MSeta) to develop these and other occupational qualifications and skills programmes.

“We have also successfully obtained funding for developing and managing programmes for advancing rural development through a coaching and mentoring programme for contractors, and courses including fire and risk management, business skills and cost and management accounting”, says Naidoo.

“We will continue assisting the forestry industry in securing funding for sectoral special and priority interventions. FATO is dedicated to developing and transferring skills and knowledge to employed and unemployed people in the forestry industry, particularly small growers”.

Source: WoodBiz Magazine – January 2024 (Pages 38 – 41)

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