Youth Engaged for Change SA exists mainly to address youth not in education, employment, and training creating short-term projects to impact youth in different areas of their lives.

Their approach is not about providing short-term relief but about equipping young people with the skills and opportunities to become self-sufficient. The organisation was officially created last year preparing to pilot its programs in seven schools; five primary and two high schools impacting around 600 students.

“The NGO was established in response to South Africa’s rising youth unemployment crisis,” said Youth Engaged for Change SA Director Margaret Makoka. “Youth Engaged for Change SA aims to address the NEET gap (not in education, employment, or training) by focusing on industries and skills that do not require matric, ensuring broader inclusion in the economy.

“The organisation seeks to build a movement where empowered youth can, in turn, uplift their peers, transforming communities and contributing to the country’s economic and social development.”

In South Africa, the NEET rate for young people aged 15 to 24 was 35.5% in the first quarter of 2024. This translates to more than 3 million young people aged between 15 and 24 who are NEET. 

Youth Engaged for Change SA aims to address the NEET gap. Photo: Supplied

Youth Engaged for Change SA

“Many of these individuals, aged between 15 and 34, lack access to opportunities due to poverty, limited career guidance, and digital exclusion.

Youth Engaged for Change SA has two programmes to empower young people:

• Ubus Ignite Youth: This program is designed for young people aged 19 to 24, offering digital and competency training. It provides Seta-accredited courses to ensure participants gain recognised qualifications, along with on-the-job training and digital literacy.
• Beyond the Bell: This initiative targets school-going youth aged 12 to 18, focusing on career guidance and coaching. Recognising that many schools lack career counselling, the program helps students make informed subject choices that align with future career opportunities in the digital and AI-driven economy.

Empowerment for youth

“We want to see a multiplying factor when it comes to empowering young, one young person who can multiply to empower another 240 young people, and that is our model,” said Makoka.

“We want to infect this city with empowerment for youth, uplifting them from a place of poverty to a place of power, inclusion, and access and changing our city one youth at a time.”

OFM News/Zenande Mpame