Humana Youth in Action in South Africa

1.      Project vision

Humana People to People in South Africa (HPP-SA or Humana for short) maintains its vision in which young people are knowledgeable, skilled and with a solid personal foundation of good and modern values, equipped to take action as leaders in the fight for better lives for all in South Africans and in the Global Arena.

The organization also still envisions young people who do not only look upon their own well being but stand shoulder to shoulder with the poor and vulnerable.

 2.      The facilities

The programme still operates from 3 Project Centers with a fourth center expected to be operational in the second quarter of the year. Each of the 3 centers has a computer room equipped with 25 computers on an internal network and with internet access. Every center also has a multimedia lab equipped with a library for video-viewing and materials for expressive arts such as presentations, writing, poster-making and drama.

 3.      Beneficiaries and the activities

Programme activities are aimed at achieving specific goals. The annual goals are that:

• 100 out of school youth are given homework support at the center for their supplementary studies to complete Matric. The 100 are also trained in computer, multimedia and life skills to prepare them to play a role in the community. After passing Matric, they can then pursue studies in a broad range of topics by signing up for a full year.
• 1600 youth are trained in basic computer skills in the three centers. The courses are conducted twice a day in 2-hour sessions from Monday to Thursday over a two week period. Each course cohort consists of 25 participants. In the process, many of the participants realize an improvement in their reading and spelling skills. They also learn Microsoft Office programs as well as the logic and methodology of using the internet in an efficient way.
• 6600 people in the surrounding communities and schools are reached with HIV & AIDS and Life Skills education. The activity is carried out on Fridays by the 100 out of school youth studying for matric.
• 200 children take part in Active Kids Club i.e. 50 per center. The Active Kids Club programme activities are performed every Saturday. In these clubs, kids learn computer skills, cultural expressions as well as socialising. Matric Students also participate in the programme activities.
• 100 Total Control of the Epidemic (TCE) Field Officers gain computers skills as part of their general training. The 100 Field Officers are mainly local young people employed by and volunteering in Humana People to People to reach 200,000 people with HIV and AIDS information and counseling. They do so through door-to-door campaigns, outreach to schools, etc.

1. Number of  out-of-school youth in the 10 month learner program

Target for year 2011: 100

Year to date Results: 75

% achieved: 75%

2. Number of youth in the 2 week Computer Course

Target for year 2011:  1 600

Year to date Results:  326

% achieved: 20%

3. Number of Orphans in Saturday Kids Clubs

Target for year 2011:  No goal

Target for year 2011:  85

% achieved:  n/a

4. Number of school children and community members reached in HIV/AIDS Outreach Activities

Target for year 2011:  6 600

Year to date Results: 1 291

% achieved: 20%

5. Number of Field Officers passing computer literacy test

Target for year 2011:  100

Year to date Results: 48

% achieved: 48%

6. Number of children in Active Kids’ Club completing the program

Target for year 2011:  200

Year to date Results: 264

% achieved: 132%

7. Number of learners trained in computer maintenance and repair

Target for year 2011:  100

Year to date Results: 54

% achieved: 54%

Comments to the results in numbers:

The program underachieved in some indicators primarily due to the fact that the Doorknop computer lab, which is one of 3 established centers, was closed for a sustained period during the reporting period.  The computer lab was closed following loss of equipment to theft earlier in the reporting period. The computer lab equipment has since been replaced through reimbursements from insurance. As such the Doornkop center could not perform as planned resulting in the overall program underachieving in some indicators.

Also the program underachieved due to unforeseen difficulties to agree with authorities in Durban Inner west to avail a few rooms for the Youth in Action centre to be hosted in. We ran into politics where the authorities wanted to be ensured on how many years funding is secured. We hope during this quarter the centre will be up running. Most of the missing 25 students are recruited and ready to start, and the computers are stored safely by a storage company. The rest of the year huge efforts will be spend to catch up on the delay.

Furthermore, underachievement on “”Number of youth in the 2 week Computer Course” was due to lower turnout as many youth in the vicinity of the project centers were already trained in 2010. The plan is to step up mobilization efforts to enroll youth from other areas not previously targeted. 

With regards to “Number of school children and community members reached in HIV/AIDS Outreach Activities”, the program is behind in the reporting period as efforts were channeled towards recruiting participants for the learner program and the computer course. HIV/AIDS Outreach Actions/Campaigns will be organized in the next reporting period to catch up on the indicator.

The following is a discussion of various activities carried out under respective categories:

Core participants i.e. Students supplementing Matric

75 core participants have been recruited and are actively participating in the program. The core participants are excelling in computer programs.

Success story 1: During school holidays, the core participants also give computer lessons as well as academic support to grade 7 learners from surrounding schools. The result has been that grade 7 learners in schools such as Diphalani and Phatudi Primary school have improved in their English and Mathematics subjects.

Success story 2: Following networking between Munsieville and a group of journalists during the 2010 FIFA world cup, a local tournament for children dubbed ’Munsieville Children’s Cup’ was started in the area.  The Humana media center in Munsieville Youth in Action (one of the program centers) was assigned to provide media services for the tournament. The Munsieville media team was so success in covering the tournament that one participant has since secured a scholarship from PriMedia - a local media giant.

The media center has since developed into a fully-fledged academy in partnership with Project Hope (UK).

Computer Studies

326 community members have been enrolled for the computer course and 70 have completed the course.

Success story: Dell funding has enabled youth from the disadvantaged communities of Munsieville, Simunye and Doornkop to gain skills they would otherwise not have acquired. This is in view of the reality that the cost of programs offered by alternative service providers in the private sector are beyond the reach of most local youth targeted by the Youth in Action program.

Community members also cherish the contribution of the program in the education sector as core participants also offer academic support to learners in primary and lower secondary schools which has resulted in improved academic performance of school learners.  

Outreach

As in the previous year, core participants carried out outreach activities in which they reach out to the community, schools and clinics to address a range of issues such as health, HIV/AIDS, gender violence, child abuse, Good Hygiene as a Way to Success, Globalization, climate, etc.

Success story: the Simunye center has formed a ‘Youth Desk’ where learners are lead by 5 volunteers who have been part of the program in the year 2010. Youth desk activities are drama, music/dance and sports.

The dance/music group has since been successful with their play called ‘Di Milleon Tsa Ouklippe’ which has billed to be showcased at the Zwakala Festival. The festival is an annual community theatre festival that showcases the best productions that come out of communities in South Africa during a particular year.  The group will also perform at the June Community festival.

The Active Kids clubs

264 Kids from the local communities participate in the Active Kids Clubs.

Success story: Feedback from community members is that they are grateful for the initiative as the clubs have a significant positive influence on the lives of their children. Community members have noted that the program keeps their children ‘off the streets’ in the process minimizing their exposure to the social ills of substance abuse, crime, teenage sex, etc. A good number of the kids have been victims to abuse or are orphans, so they benefit from the adult counseling and safety imbedded in the programme.

Plans

The Dell funded Humana Youth In Action intends to have the Durban center fully operational from July 2011 as available premises have now been identified. The Computer activities will also be in full swing during the next reporting period. The center will implement a catch up plan to secure that goals are met by the end of the grant period.

Below are plans per activity category:

Core Participants

The goal on the core Participants has to be reached in Durban and the plan is to make them more active in program activities. As such the participants will be assisted to plan their own future which entails making career choices.

Computer courses

As the program is behind in computer courses, the plan is to step up mobilization efforts to enroll youth from other areas not previously targeted. 

Active Kids Club

Activities are progressing well and the plan is to increase the level of academic support the kids receive from the core participants especially in Mathematics and English subjects.

Community Outreach

The program plans to carry out a number of actions and campaigns in target communities. In particular, the program intends to mobilize community members to establish backyard vegetable gardens in their homesteads. The vegetable gardens will go a long way in meeting their nutritional needs.

Conclusion

The Dell-funded Youth in Action program is poised to record more success in the year 2011. However the need for programs such as the Youth in Action is huge in communities not currently covered by the current projects hence the need to step up efforts to secure more support from able partners such as Dell.     

Links:

• Official Humana People to People in South Africa Website

• HYIA_Dell_Youth_Connect_Interim_ReportJune_2011AD.pdf (PDF)