SAFRI_english_high res

10 SAFRI: Students Experience Programme (STEP)
Nokuthula Zungu, STEP participant 2009 © STEP

11
A STEP Towards Your Future Career
SAFRI, the Southern Africa initiative of German Business, offers six-month internships at Daimler
AG in partnership with Mercedes-Benz South Africa (MBSA) and other companies in Germany.
Since 2005, more than 60 participants from Angola, Botswana, Madagascar, Mozambique, Namibia,
Zimbabwe and South Africa have successfully completed the Students Experience Programme
(STEP).
The encouraging economic growth of the SADC
countries is boosting demand for qualified, local
specialists and managers in the private sector.
This applies both to emerging local companies
and German businesses looking to tap into the
region’s markets.
The aim of the STEP program is to better prepare
young people from the SADC region for future
career challenges by offering them internships
at German companies. As well as strengthening
the participants’ own positions on the labour
market, the program raises the general level
of qualification on offer to the students and in
so doing also supports the activities of German
companies in the region.
Who is it for?
It’s a Partnership between
Students and Companies!
High calibre students and graduates in the fields
of engineering, controlling, logistics, sales and
marketing, business administration and IT with
less than one year of professional experience can
apply for admission to STEP. The duties for the
internship will accordingly match the degree of
study or qualification.
Even before the application process begins, German
companies have the possibility of passing
on their profile requirements for interns to STEP
based on the company’s current or planned activities
in Southern Africa. The targeted placement
of graduates benefits both the students and the
companies involved. The universities and HR experts
from Mercedes-Benz South Africa and the
SAFRI office use assessment centres to decide on
the allocation of internships.
The six-month internship provides participants
with the opportunity to build on their knowledge
and abilities, and to acquire skills specific
to their future careers. Companies also benefit
from the intern’s abilities and ideally, the intern
and the German companies continue working
together in Southern Africa once the internship
is over, strengthening existing structures and
opening up new markets.

12
SAFRI: Students Experience Programme (STEP)
Insight into Working Life
and Different Cultures
STEP simultaneously provides a taste of the
business environment while also offering international
experience in multicultural contexts.
The practical assignment for which every participant
receives support from his/her personal
mentor, is supplemented by an educational program
that attempts to bridge the societal and
cultural differences between Germany and the
participant’s home country. German language
courses commence before the participants
come to Germany and are continued during the
internship. Business training is another aspect of
the comprehensive all round package that STEP
offers participants and companies.
Focus on People
Experiences of working life in Germany, German
language skills and insights into the culture
and mentality of the host country as well as the
participant’s personal memories and friendships
create the perfect conditions for future business
relations between Germany and Southern Africa.
After all, the people are ultimately what count in
the success of a business.
STEP 2008 (left to right): Herbert Grünwald (former Managing Director of
STEP participant host Dornier Consulting), Kagiso Hlabahlaba, Emilia Prozesky,
Sandra Schapler (Dornier Consulting), Kabelo Mokwena © STEP
Project Details
What does the STEP program include?
A six-month internship at a partner company
Internship in a field in which the participant
is qualified
Return flight
Intern salary
German language classes in home country
and in Germany
Support from a mentor
Business training
Good Prospects:
Experience in Germany is in Demand!
STEP interns are highly sought-after in their home
countries upon their return, and they usually
have good chances of finding qualified positions
at companies in the southern African region.
Participating German companies also benefit
from the interns’ dedication and the transfer of
experience from Southern Africa to Germany.
German companies often actively include former
interns in their networks in the region, whether
at their own local subsidiaries or at partner companies
(distributors, for example). In 2010 the
SAFRI office established a STEP alumni network –
an ideal point of contact for German companies
that are looking for southern African specialists
with experience of working in Germany.
Further information can be found
on the internet at: www.safri.de
Author
Andreas Wenzel
Secretary General
Southern Africa Initiative
of German Business (SAFRI)
Contact
Joanne Dittrich
STEP Project Coordinator
Tel.: +49 (0)711 17-77549
joanne.dittrich@daimler.com