Western Cape Infrastructure Apprenticeships

Written by Thabo MokoenaSenior Education Editor

Reviewed & verified by Naledi KhumaloSenior Admissions and Bursaries EditorVerified

The Western Cape Government’s Department of Infrastructure is recruiting unemployed young people for funded construction apprenticeships in two trades, electrical and plumbing. The department published four adverts on 19 August 2026, each tied to one trade in one region: Cape Metro (both trades), the Cape Winelands (plumbing) and the West Coast (electrical). Apprentices train for three and a half years and are paid R7,500 a month in total. All four adverts close on 30 September 2026 at midnight, and applications go through the SAYouth.mobi platform, not to the department directly.

Four adverts, three regions

You may only apply for the advert that matches where you live, because residence in that region is a minimum requirement.

The electrical entry bar is low: Grade 9 with Pure Mathematics is enough on paper. Plumbing asks for more, at the level of N2 engineering subjects. For both trades, earlier training in the trade counts in your favour. The Cape Metro electrical advert also recommends experience in formal work or an Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) placement in the trade itself, facility maintenance, roadworks, cleaning, waste management or renewable energy such as solar and wind.

Who the department will take

• South African citizens aged 18 to 30.
• Unemployed at the time of applying.
• Living in the Cape Metro, Cape Winelands or West Coast, as the advert requires.
• In good health and willing to undergo a medical and a substance-abuse test.
• Physically fit for a construction site, including work at heights.
• Willing to travel to and work on building sites anywhere in the Western Cape, not only in the home region.

R5,500 stipend plus R2,000 allowance each month

Each advert offers a stipend of R5,500 a month and a separate allowance of R2,000 a month for the duration of the apprenticeship agreement. The training runs for three years and six months and mixes theory, simulation training and practical work on site, where apprentices also learn to apply health and safety rules, maintain their work area and handle administrative tasks.

Successful applicants sign an apprenticeship contract with the department. One advert differs: the West Coast electrical advert refers to a 12-month training agreement and pays the allowance “for the duration of the Training Agreement”. Applicants in that region should ask the department to confirm the contract length at the interview or offer stage. None of the adverts mentions a job with the department after qualifying.

Registering on SAYouth.mobi

Register and apply on SAYouth.mobi from your own smartphone or from the facilities at a local library, Thusong Centre, E-Centre, Youth Café or internet café. Only shortlisted candidates are asked, later, to upload certified copies of their ID and highest qualification on SAYouth.mobi, so keep those ready. If three months pass after the closing date with no response, the department says to treat the application as unsuccessful.

The four adverts are linked from the department’s Apprenticeship opportunities 2026 article. Questions go to the Western Cape Government walk-in centre at 9 Wale Street, Cape Town, on 0860 142 142 or service@westerncape.gov.za (Monday to Friday, 08:00 to 16:00). For help with the SAYouth.mobi platform itself, call Harambee on 0800 72 72 72 or email info@sayouth.org.za.

Other provincial funding is listed on our Western Cape Government bursaries page. For the trades themselves, see electrician bursaries and how the trade test route works.

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