Witnessing his fellow educators struggling to cope with the newly-introduced outcomes-based education (OBE) system without access to computers, Rani quit his job and began selling refurbished computers out of the boot of his car. This marked the humble beginning of Silulo Ulutho Technologies as it's known today. But Rani says the computers sold often ended up collecting dust in teachers’ homes, due to almost non-existent computer literacy.
The lack of infrastructure and services offered in the community meant that residents had no affordable access to technology and were forced to travel to outlying areas for simple internet access. He knew he had to extend his reach within the area. The realisation led to Khayelitsha’s first internet café in 2006, opened by Rani and his partners Nandipha Matshoba and Sigqibo Pangabantu.
The café provided members of the community with email and CV assistance, access to basic software packages and the internet. But this was the start of something bigger. “We realised that many people couldn’t differentiate between fax and email so we knew that people needed training badly,” Rani said during his talk at last week’s Internet and Social Media Summit in Cape Town. To address this deficiency, they established the first Silulo Ulutho training centre. Demand increased rapidly, and soon more of these one-stop IT shops were rolled out in other townships and rural areas in need.
Fast forward 10 years, and the company now has 40 branches to its name scattered between the Western and Eastern Cape, offering computer and phone sales and repairs, web development, CV creation, printing, scanning, faxing, binding, lamination, typing of letters and computer training. 15 of these are franchised. Central to the business model is affordability, so prices are kept as low as possible to cater to emerging markets.
Rani says training is quickly becoming their key business as Silulo grows into one of the largest computer training organisations in the Khayelitsha community. 25,000 students have passed through the company’s training programmes, 80% of whom are female. Along with basic computer training, Silulo also offers certificates in office administration, graphic design, web design, end user computing, technical support, and digital video editing. He says that the training provided has greatly enhanced the possibility of employment, while some graduates become inspired to study further, and about 10% go on to start their own small business.
Sharing in Silulo’s success are the 178 staff members it employs, 60% of them being former students. Four of the 15 franchised branches are also owned by graduates. Commenting on this Rani says, “We need to share part of the cake that we’re baking with our people. They need to benefit from the model that we’ve built, and we need to produce other entrepreneurs through our work.“
He believes his entrepreneurial spirit was sparked at a young age assisting customers in his mother’s shebeen after school. And when the police raids ensued (as shebeens were illegal at the time), he says that taught him the resilience needed for the demands of running his own business. As the only black recipient of the Schwab Foundation Social Entrepreneur of the Year award, Rani asserts that personal triumphs must be highlighted. He says, “We need more entrepreneurs. As a country we need to create a culture of entrepreneurship and celebrate their success.”
Silulo Ulutho's story is certainly one worth celebrating.
