Herotel Academy has trained hundreds of young entrepreneurs and unemployed people across South Africa as part of its internal and community-focused skills development programme.

Erica Botha, Herotel’s head of learning and development, explained that the Academy was their dedicated learning and development team.

She said its work focused on growing employees from within the organisation, while also equipping unemployed people with skills to build sustainable futures.

Herotel said the programme formed part of its broader effort to connect homes, communities, opportunities, and local economies across South Africa.

The company is South Africa’s third-largest fibre network operator by homes passed and connected, and recently announced that it became the largest fibre Internet service provider in the country.

This year, the Herotel Academy focused on seven communities: Sebokeng, Siyabuswa, Namakgale, Barberton, Jouberton, Kanana, and Mossel Bay.

Across these areas, 225 young entrepreneurs were recruited and trained through a programme focused on entrepreneurship and practical business skills.

The training covered opportunity identification, business models, ethics, and social responsibility, while encouraging participants to build collaborative networks.

“Beyond skills development, it fostered collaboration and connection among participants, creating networks of entrepreneurs who can support and grow alongside one another,” Botha said.

“Several candidates launched careers as Herotel sales agents, earning commission in their communities, while others secured full-time employment with Herotel.”

Others secured full-time employment with Herotel, which Botha said showed that the Academy creates entrepreneurial and direct employment pathways.

Herotel expanded its Academy initiative by inviting 50 learners into a dedicated mentorship programme to help them register their own companies.

“These entrepreneurs continue to receive ongoing mentoring as they develop their ventures,” said Botha.

Herotel also equipped 80 individuals with disabilities with practical entrepreneurial skills to help them build sustainable businesses.

“Most recently, Herotel trained 60 Sales Ambassadors in Mahikeng and East London and is now preparing for the next phase of entrepreneurship mentoring,” Botha said.

Connecting communities

Van Zyl Botha, Herotel CEO

Herotel said the Academy’s work aligned with its broader mission to expand digital connectivity across underserved communities in South Africa.

The company’s fibre services were already playing a major role in connecting households in townships and smaller communities.

In 2024, Herotel CEO Van Zyl Botha said the company’s customers used an average of seven devices per home.

He said customers paid an average of R429 per month, equal to about R2 per device per day for uncapped Internet.

Botha said this offered strong value compared with mobile networks, where 1GB of data typically costs around R50.

He added that high-usage Herotel customers consumed around 1,000GB per month, equal to approximately 32GB per day.

At R50 per GB, that usage would cost about R1,600 per day on mobile data, assuming no bulk monthly deal.

Botha also said Herotel’s collective efforts had added 70,000 township customers, connecting around 490,000 devices to uncapped Internet.

“Through these efforts, Herotel is not only expanding digital connectivity across South Africa but empowering entrepreneurs,” Erica Botha told MyBroadband.

She said entrepreneurs were being empowered with the skills, networks, and opportunities needed to uplift their communities and drive sustainable local growth.

“This commitment reflected Herotel’s core values of Community Heart and Learning Mind in its ongoing vision to connect the unconnected.”