SOS CHILDREN’S VILLAGES Equips young people for the world of work, through its Youthcan! and Youthlinks programmes

As we commemorate Youth Month, SOS Children’s Villages in South Africa reinforces the importance of investing in youth education, training and skills development.

SOS Children’s Villages is a nongovernmental organisation that offers family-like residential care for children and young people who have lost or are at risk of losing parental care.

Established in 1984, SOS has eight Children’s Villages and three Social Centres across eight provinces, looking after more than 800 children and youth in its villages, and supporting thousands more in its family strengthening and community outreach programme.

Through the ‘YouthCan!’ and ‘YouthLinks’ programmes SOS Children’s Villages partners with corporate companies, to provide young people with exposure to vocational training opportunities and also links them to mentors who can support them on their journey. They are provided with job shadowing opportunities at different companies, and they are given learnership and internship opportunities. These programmes use the power of technology to provide training and mentorship opportunities, overcoming geographical and professional limitations.

Corporate partnerships are leveraged to support young people to successfully manage the transition from school to independent adulthood.

SOS Children’s Villages has dedicated Youth Development Coordinators at each programme, who are fully responsible for youth development and support.

Corporate support and donors are needed to continue this important work.

Please support SOS Children’s Villages by going to:

www. sossouthafrica.org.za

Phone: +27 11 234 8708

Email: info@sos.org.za