To mark IkamvaYouth’s 10th Anniversary, we’re celebrating the Superheroes who’ve helped us to achieve the landmark successes worth celebrating. Read all about them and our super achievements in the latest IkamvaYouth 2012 Annual Report.
If you want to download the file, click below
Among superheroes, lessons learned and our vision for 2030, you’ll find a board game where you can play the highs and lows of IkamvaYouth’s first decade. Download the Game tokens here.
Life Coaching with Mr Similindile Qiniso Mavundla
It was day 7 of winter school and IkamvaYouthKZN was at it again. The afternoon activities begun and all learners were excited. Mr Oiniso Mavundla, a young man from the township of Umlazi had asked to work hand in hand with IkamvaYouth and bring in some of his work, as he admires what is already being done with the learners. Qiniso enjoys working with the youth, his main focus is to encourage the youth in developing their skills, building confidence and having a clear mindset to achieve their goals.
Over the course of three days, Qiniso delivered inspirational talks to the grade 11 and 12 learners. He began by introducing himself and his purpose, which is to ensure that each learner is aware of what confidence and positive self-esteem could do for you, improving ones communication skills, knowing your dreams and achievements, and knowing how to get what you want in life.
He then discussed in detail with the learners how a person can develop his or her personal skills. Qiniso mentioned that each learner should have what he calls a “Success Mindset”. He encouraged the learners, to take notes and make use of the info given especially since they are at the point where they are getting closer into entering a new beginning where they will have challenges before adapting to new lifestyles.
In overall this meant that the personal development session helps to equip young people to develop a winning mindset and to overcome some of the biggest obstacles in life, such as fear, self-doubt past failures and help them to tap into a new level of thinking where they will see success and abundance and be able to unleash the success that is lying unused within them.
Qiniso empowered all the learners by his motivational talks, showing them different ways of how to achieve their goals, what to look at when solving their problems, be it at home or at school, how to avoid negativity, and to be aware of the dangers one can encounter in life.
Qiniso seeks to have and continuing relationship with IkamvaYouth as he admires the amount of work that is being done for the learners. We surely look forward in working with him in the near future.
Mandela Day for us the Ikamva learners
Mandela day, 18 July 2013 for us the Ikamva learners was a great opportunity for us to give back and make a change. We, the learners of IkamvaYouth: Chesterville found ourselves going to the AH Zulu Pre-School in Chesterville right opposite the Youth Centre where we attend the after school tutoring sessions. The staff members of the crèche welcomed us warmly and showed us the rooms in which we were going to be painting. We also helped with washing the windows, painting cartoon characters on the crèche wall and draw a lot of lovely pictures for the kids at the crèche to cherish. We really enjoyed ourselves and it was great helping out for more than 67 minutes.
We did this to give back to the community where we the Ikamva learners reside, the same way in which the former president Nelson Mandela gave his life and fought for our freedom. For us, as the learners of IkamvaYouth giving back is very important because we receive everyday by attending at IkamvaYouth. The tutors also take their time to come in and give back by tutoring us learners. So we were also giving back to the crèche and the community. Our loving tutors also came along to assist us with the cleaning and painting.
I am humbled once again by the selfless nature and humility of the man that is Nelson Mandela. He is a true hero of our people. I can only hope that his story will be treasured for future generations because humanity needs more people like Nelson Mandela. May he live long! May the almighty God bless him and give him longer lasting life.
By: Sine Moesha Majozi (Grade 10 Ikamvanite)
On Friday the 26th of July 2013, the KZN team of IkamvaYouth got all dolled up, and headed off to Pietermaritzburg’s Protea Imperial Hotel for the 3rd annual KZN Young Achievers Awards. The purpose of the Young Achiever Awards is to acknowledge, encourage, reward and most importantly promote the positive achievements of KZN youth aged between 16 and 35 years. The prestigious ceremony was attended by the Honourable Pietermaritzburg Mayor, Chris Ndlela, who warmly welcomed everyone to the City of Choice.
The awards recognise the achievements of youth, who are giving back to their communities in the following categories: Arts; Beauty & Fashion; Arts; Agriculture & Rural Initiatives; Science & Technology; Health; Sports; Best Media Initiative; and last but not least, Best Youth Development Organisation, which went to IkamvaYouth.
The award recipients
IkamvaYouth isn’t new to receiving awards, but this one is particularly special to the KZN team, as it is a first for the district. It was really encouraging to receive this award, as it was an acknowledgement of our work in KZN. The award came at a really special time, as the organisation celebrates its 10 year anniversary.
Also receiving awards on the evening, were a number of individuals who are not necessarily considered “young”, but have played a key role in youth development, and made an impact on young people’s lives in KZN and across South Africa. Recipients of these honourary awards were Dr Shabalala of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Zanele Mbokazi of Ukhozi fm, Dr Mthembu of Indoni SA, Dr Ngcobo of Ukuphila Wellness, and Menzi Ngubane of Generations.
Dr Shabalala of Ladysmith Black Mambazo and Menzi Ngubane (aka Sibusiso) of Generations receiving Honourary awards.
Being in a room with so many other young people who are making a difference in the community through their various fields was really encouraging. For IkamvaYouth, it just shows that Vision 2030 is indeed attainable!
Team KZN: The Sky is the limit!
Winter School 2013 Week 1
Week 1 of Winter School 2013, all the preparations and hard work in the previous months have come down to this event. The Monday morning was a little hectic, with the bus service running slightly behind schedule for the Umlazi learners. By the time it hit 9 am, the team was already working hard to make sure everything goes as planned.
The venue for this year was DUT (Durban University of Technology, our kind sponsors), and once again the two KZN branches collaborated and held a joint Winter School, which resulted in having 220 learners and 50 volunteers.
The KZN Team designed the beautiful T-shirts to go with the theme for the KZN Winter School which was “my future is in my hands”. The idea behind it was to remind and reinforce to the learners that they are in the driver’s seat of their own futures. To go hand in hand with the theme a beautiful sketch was drawn by N’thabiseng Zwane from the Umlazi branch. It depicts the world, with various careers, being held by a pair of hands and the image is visual representation of the statement “my future is in my hands”.
The winter school time table (Monday to Thursday) was structured in such a way that mornings would consist of academic tutoring, and the afternoons reserved for activities such as life skills workshops and talks, exercise sessions, and MIE activities and the first Friday was reserved for excursions for all the grades.
One of the first creative activities that were done by the learners was a session encouraging them to reflect on what our winter school theme (My Future is in My Hands) means to them. All the learners had to make “hands” out of paper that represent what the slogan means to them. Some of the learners really put their heart and soul into the creative session. Learners were offered the opportunity to share what they had created with their groups.
We were also graced by the presence of World Changers Academy to speak to the grade 10 and grade 11 learners. The talks were revolved around motivation and letting the learners know that anything is possible and they should never feel like they can’t succeed in life. This is very important as learners are exposed to a lot of negativity in the township on a daily basis.
While we had WCA to motivate the learners and make sure they stay forever hopeful and know they will succeed, we also had people from NICRO talk to the learners about the work they do. NICRO is an organisation that diverts offenders who have committed minor crimes (eg. Minor shop-lifting) from prison to community service and similar activities. The importance of understanding that anyone can commit an offence (sometimes not intentionally) and end up on the wrong side of the law is what this organisation stresses. Gugu Ximba, who works as a drug counselor at the Vuyani Nkosi Youth Centre, where the Chesterville branch is based, presented a drug awareness talk to the learners. She took the learners through a list of common drugs, their side effects and why the learners should stay away from them.
During week one, we also had a visit from the Love life mpintshis., who insisted that all staff and volunteers leave the room as they talk strictly to learners. The purpose of this is to help the learners feel free and comfortable enough to talk about the issues they cover. These range from sexuality to abuse.
DUT was able to come on board even more through their Department of Food and Nutrition. The department was able to send one of their staff members to give the learners a talk on the importance of a balanced diet, how to achieve it and what are some of the consequences of not eating well. They also sponsored each leaner with a tin of cook-in evaporated milk. The talks were spaced over four days. Two days in the first week and two days in the second week.
With most of the activities requiring the learners to pay attention and listen carefully, we needed some activities that they could actively (physically) participate in as well. In the first week all the grades had an opportunity to go to the grounds to exercise after lunch. They were accompanied by an independent fitness trainer who was there to make sure they were participating and doing everything properly. They looked forward to it, especially since they would get a chance to do something different not just sitting in the classrooms.
The one activity that got all the learners very excited was the Amazing Race. We decided to create our own small version of this fun race around the campus. All four grades got to participate in the race at different times. The grade 9s and 12s were the first group. The race included a health quiz, picture puzzle, shooting hoops and solving Maths puzzles.
The week ended with excursions for all the learners. The grade 9 and 12 ventured off to the UKZN Science and Technology Centre, while the Grade 10 and 11 went to the Durban Green Corridor Estuary.
The Grade 9 and 12 learners were taken on a tour of the Science centre and also witnessed some of the experiments that take place at the centre. The grade 9 learners also got a chance to see the microscopes up close. The matric group also got to do a learning styles workshop. The workshop allows participants to determine their learning styles. This allows a person to better understand how they make decisions and also how they interpret the world. It is a true eye-opener for anyone who has ever wondered why and how they do certain things different to other people.
At the Green Corridor Estuary the grade 10 and 11 group did a beach clean-up. They also got a chance to see the famed Mangroves of Durban and learn all about them.
All in all the first week was an exciting and great learning curve for the team.
The last day of winter school is usually a day where everyone is breathing a sigh of relief that everything went well, surpassed the minor challenges that go with winter school and having survived the 2weeks however for the KZN region we had to give it one last push. Last year we hosted a sports day in collaboration with ABI and this year it was decided that we would take it up a notch and have a Health Awareness Day. Once again, ABI came on board and participated on the day, by providing the sporting equipment, drinks, as well as joining in the day’s activities.
The Durban weather was close enough to disappointing everybody involved as the rain had us biting our nails, the hours went on and as we waited for the rain to clear, we decided to have an impromptu talent show and learners began showcasing their talents through artwork presentations, comedy skit, music and poetry all in relation to the winter school theme (My future is my hands) they had been given in their MIE programme they had participated in throughout the 2weeks.
The health awareness day had various organisations come in and provide support, providing information and screening opportunities for various health issues. Sexual health information and HIV testing and counseling was provided by CAPRISA, and general health assessments (blood pressure, diabetes, cholesterol, and BMI) were done by Old Mutual, while eye testing was done by Spec Savers. The learners showed interest and eagerly participated in all of these different services.
The sports aspect of the day was really the big moment for everyone; all learners had been divided into 6 groups, made up by the rainbow colours…well most. Each group was given a plain white t-shirt to design and come up with a war cry that they felt would represent their teams and show excellent team spirit and indeed the war cry’s showcased exactly that. All 6 teams raised the bar each time they were on stage and left us, who were watching, wanting more.
Passion and excitement filled the netball and soccer fields as the different teams all played for a win. Volunteers, ABI staff and learners all cheered their respective teams on. The sports was not only limited to netball and soccer, traditional township games such as amagende, magalobhe and shumpu that the learners grew up playing in the passages of their townships were accommodated for. In the end, irrespective of only one team being winners we all celebrated and danced like winners. The day proved to everybody that come rain or sunshine IY always achieves its objective through partnership and collaboration from everybody involved and that is what team work looks like!
Lloyd Lungu031 909 3590
lloyd@ikamvayouth.org
2525 Ngcede Grove, Umlazi AA Library, 4031
Lloyd is a self-disciplined and highly goal-driven Industrial Psychology Honours graduate. He is currently a Master's candidate completing his second year of M.Com in Industrial Psychology at the University of the Free State. Lloyd joined IkamvaYouth as a learner in 2012, after matriculating he came back and volunteered as a tutor for the duration of his undergraduate studies at UKZN. He later worked as an Intern in the Chesterville branch. His passion for youth empowerment and inclusion has grown enormously through his time and experience gained within IkamvaYouth and has inspired him to provide career guidance to young township people. He is currently working at the Umlazi Branch as a Branch Assistant.