About Us
The challenge
Young people in underprivileged townships and rural schools face significant barriers to learning. Substance abuse, bullying, gangsterism, violence and high dropout rates worsened by teen pregnancies all contribute to a general lack of motivation to achieve. In 2016, in one of the communities we support, more learners died in violent incidents than through accidents or disease and over 3,000 girls were reported to have dropped out of school due to teen pregnancies. High youth unemployment means that even university graduates are left to roam the streets alongside unemployed school leavers.
Low educational achievement and poor job prospects contribute in turn to South Africa’s high crime rate. The number of young people who are neither in school nor employment is increasing each year.
Against this background, we believe that young people who have passed grade 12 but remain impoverished and unemployed can be trained and motivated to become a community resource. We also believe that the learning and teaching environment in South African schools can be improved.
“No society can long sustain itself unless its members have learned the sensitivities, motivations, and skills involved in assisting and caring for other human beings.” — ~Bronfenbrenner