“Nhlonipho Respect The condition of being honored esteemed or respected or well regarded”
From an early age, Lucia had a love for the arts. Today she has taken her passion and turned it into a business. “NHLONIPHO CRAFT ART”, the name of her company, comes from the respect she has for her products. In her company, she does beading, and makes badges, jewellery and mosaics.
Lucia received a lot of training from the Afrika Tikkun Career Development Programme programme. The training allowed her to transition into an entrepreneurial programme with the Curriculum Development Project for Art and Culture Education Training. This is where she learnt to do mosaic, beading, jewellery making and making badges.
Despite running a successful start-up, Lucia is placing a lot of energy on developing her craft, giving back to the community and developing her financial knowledge. Many people, whether they are working a job or running their own business fail to understand the fundamentals of handling their money, planning and budgeting to avoid finding themselves in the traps of debt.
After graduating, she trained 15 young unemployed women from her community as her way of giving back.
Never work a day in your life when you love what you do!
Dear Fellow “Tikkuners”
As we start one of the most watershed years of the last two decades, we reflect on where we are today, and where we would like to be. We want peace and prosperity and have learnt that to have these, we need to wish and work for not just ourselves, but for all living in this paradise country. We want to feel we matter in the world. The way we experience this is by having a sense of purpose to our existence. In giving, we receive. In offering support for others, we experience a gratitude for all that we have.
Reflecting on the last year, we express our gratitude to you for enabling us to give alongside you and pray you experienced as much in return. Together, we made a significant difference not to… but with… over 20,000 beneficiaries who learnt or are on the path to taking responsibility for the outcome of their lives. Together with you, we fed over 800,000 meals to children, many of whom would only survive from these meals. Over 85% of “our” matriculants achieved pass rates and many will be entering institutions of higher learning, whilst over 1000 will enter into learnerships and work experience programmes, and a significant number will start small enterprises.
In the face of job security and growing youth unemployment, we are doing something significant in pioneering the Cradle to Career 360° model.
In 2019, we will strive for more together, and achieve even better results as we take our model to scale. We are focusing on improving the standard of our ECD teachers, upgrading IT infrastructure and investing further in career skills training. By working directly with corporations who define their skills requirements, we will train and place ever increasingly productive youth in jobs for which they are well suited. Skills training will translate increasingly into productive employment. The Afrika Tikkun team is motivated and driven by a passion to make a difference, knowing we have a lot to learn, but confident that we will positively impact the lives of thousands who, when they go to the polls to vote, will do so with a sense of responsibility and a knowledge that it is only through hard work, innovation and persistence, and not corruption, that success will be ours for the sharing.
I welcome you to journey alongside with us as true partners.
Warmly
MARC LUBNER AND THE AFRIKA TIKKUN TEAM
Each year, leading online Marketing and Advertising communication website, Bizcommunity, publishes its BizTrends feature for the new year. For 2019, Afrika Tikkun’s CEO, Marc Lubner was invited to deliver commentary on anticipated trends in the NGO sector for 2019. Read the article here: https://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/721/185934.html
Why learning about money from an early age is essential to ending child poverty
“Sam” was raised in Alexandra township. He opened his first bank account at age 21, and spends 40% of his income on “black tax”, and another substantial amount on raising his adopted son. “Chantelle” was raised in a middle class family, and her parents opened her first bank account at age ten for her. She has no dependents, but was unprepared for the world of finance and so a few bad investments have left her in a state of permanent debt. “Danny” was raised in a very wealthy and financially astute family. He made his first million on the stock market, when he was in high school.
Three very different, true South African stories – with only the names changed.
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It raises the question why we do not take more care to raise our children – and especially children to be financially savvy. Think about the debt incurred by students during their tertiary study years – and the years that it takes to pay these quick loans off. Financial literacy is not only about saving and budgeting. It’s also about investing, understanding credit and debt, taxes, insurance, banking, fraud and identity theft, and employment and income.
Financial literacy is also a powerful way to teach children about consequences, self-discipline and the importance of preparedness. This we must all inevitably find out ourselves – is a lesson none of us can ever prepare for enough. That children from socio-economic deprived situations should be taught financial literacy, and the basics of personal finance is a too easy overlooked necessity – in the midst of everything else they need to learn. For children affected by poverty, it should arguably be considered a human right. But not just that, increased financial literacy is essential for economic growth.
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Financial literacy will help the economy better manage its national debt habit – South African households are drowning in debt. With the increased access of the poor to banking and credit, there has been a commensurate decrease in the credit health of the poor. According to research from Danish bank and lender Sambla, “Indigent Poor Families” are the worst performing group on the index.
It is possible, and of critical importance, that such families are given personal finance skills in order to be able to manage expenditure and debt, and plan for the future. With whatever resources one starts out with, it is important to recognise that the power of financial control is effectively the power to overcome poverty, to ensure long term well-being and protect future generations. The importance of this is so great, that it could easily overshadow the point made at the very start of this piece – that building financial knowledge and experience also teaches executive functions with a much broader application – a child who is taught to budget and save is also learning about accountability, personal agency and deferring immediate pleasure for future benefit.
According to a Brookings University study on financial literacy, evidence suggests that learning the value and use of money needs to begin in early childhood, and continue throughout the schooling career. A curriculum begins with laying a foundation for healthy financial behaviours and attitudes to be put into practice as the child matures, and learns not only financial concepts, knowledge and skills; but also gains practical experience in working with his or her own money.
There are a number of ways in which to approach the development of financial literacy. The first is to recognise the ways in which poor families are in fact saving and investing – funeral policies and informal saving schemes like stokvels, grocery schemes and burial societies continue year in and year out to be the most popular vehicles for saving. But only 18% of poor families are saving for their children’s education. 41% of parents from these families expect their children to look after them when they are old; while 50% of these families expect the government to do that. With the high and increasing rate of youth unemployment, and our economy’s slow growth and beleaguered political environment – it is easy to anticipate that poor South African families may become even more entrenched in poverty than they have been.
South Africans in the last few years have become better at saving and planning for their financial future; but one of the cultural traps for poor South African families is “black tax”. Black tax or the obligation to provide for extended family affects many families, and is the reason that families are not accumulating wealth or saving towards their children’s future.
It is critical therefore that children are taught to understand the benefits of saving from an early age. Coronation offered Afrika Tikkun’s young people and their parents financial management workshops in Alexandra in 2018. What made their approach unique was that training was offered to the entire family. “We have noticed that our young people are not familiar with financial skills and what it entails. We decided to include parents because we realised that it brings no success to teach the kids only and then when they go back home their parents don’t have the knowledge. These workshops will help them be on the same level of understanding and handling finances,” said Malvin Khumalo, the Coronation facilitator.Learning about the world of money needs to offer real life and simulated learning experience opportunities.
Every year, the JSE runs the JSE Challenge with our young people. The JSE Challenge creates a simulated environment in which young people learn how to invest on the stock market. In communities where resources are few, simulation and games still enable a child to learn despite scarcity. It is also important that children learn the power of starting and saving small amounts regularly. The Piggy Bank project running at some of the centres allows children to do just that. What is essential in any curriculum and activity the full partnership and involvement of financial and fin-tech institutions
Learning to be prepared for financial shocks, and to know how it will affect your pocket and your future career well ahead of time is a powerful motivator to keep the piggy bank full. More than that is how it empowers a sense of self-efficacy in children and young people. When fire, pregnancy, death or abandonment afflict a young person in a township, the impact is made more severe by a lack of resources and dependence on services that are not easily accessible – your circumstances control you. We need to begin to arm children and families affected by poverty with the awareness and tools they need in order to prevent the future from threatening their survival and well-being.
A practical education of financial well-being is the missing link in our education system today. Children who are taught how to use, save, obtain and multiply money are given a foundational tool with which to navigate life. It generates the kind of insights that will make for a more enterprising society – simply because of the mindset and practical value it gives the child. Right now we are facing an economy with slow growth and a very poor growth forecast – we need more entrepreneurship, more enterprising minds and much more responsible behavior around our debt and spending.
President Ramaphosa needs to consider how financial literacy is incorporated throughout the curriculum, if entrepreneurship is indeed to be one of the outcomes our educational system
Financial decisions are integral to our everyday lives. We are following up on the 2018 Financial Literacy workshops held in Alexandra to see if what was learied has made any difference in the lives of the participants.
We meet with Elija Netshandama and his partner Katlego Kekana. The couple attended all the workshops, and today share with us how these workshops benefited them.
The couple says they have learned to prioritise and have passed this knowledge to their kids as well in the house. To cut certain costs and save money, Elijah bought himself a haircut clipper. Now he and his son cut their hair at home instead of both of going to the salon every week. Katlego on the other hand, only visits the salon to get her hair relaxed once in two months and she now plaits her daughter’s hair herself. This has helped to cut costs on hair in the family.
It’s tough to focus but we are trying, said the couple. For the first time, they managed to get through December. They say instead of buying Christmas clothes they bought school uniforms. They have also cut some items out from their grocery list and have moved a child from a private to a public school that is near to their home. This way they have cut monthly school fees and transport fare. It seems like a harsh decision, but after carefully reviewing their financial situation, they felt it had to be done.
Another issue the couple has looked at is their transport fare to go to and from work. With the recent decrease in petrol, they share their car, which is proving cheaper than using taxis. Should petrol increase, their plan is to park the car and use taxis. This is one thing they will keep on assessing, depending on petrol price.
Katlego has not yet planned for her retirement, but Elija is planning to have a catering business when he retires because he loves cooking. He is planning to slowly buy equipment now on lower prices especially when they are on sale. This way he can even start hiring the equipment out to boost their home income. The couple has an educational plan for their children with Old Mutual.
It’s the couples dream to move out of Alex, they say they want to buy a house and build a home for their family in a safe residential area. Now that they are able to achieve their long term goals and make healthy financial decisions, they believe that they will achieve their dreams for their family.
Another issue the couple has looked at is their transport fare to go to and from work. With the recent decrease in petrol, they share their car, which is proving cheaper than using taxis. Should petrol increase, their plan is to park the car and use taxis. This is one thing they will keep on assessing, depending on petrol price.
Katlego has not yet planned for her retirement, but Elija is planning to have a catering business when he retires because he loves cooking. He is planning to slowly buy equipment now on lower prices especially when they are on sale.
This way he can even start hiring the equipment out to boost their home income. The couple has an educational plan for their children with Old Mutual.
It’s the couples dream to move out of Alex, they say they want to buy a house and build a home for their family in a safe residential area. Now that they are able to achieve their long term goals and make healthy financial decisions, they believe that they will achieve their dreams for their family.
“All people I look up to run their own businesses and it’s their frame of mind that caught my attention, their ability to think big regardless of how limited their resources are. You might know some of these successful businessmen I speak of, people like Shaun Carter famously known as Jay Z and DJ Sbu.”
These are the words of Afrika Tikkun alumni Vusi Ngema, who was the creative brain behind some of Afrika Tikkun’s most colourful exhibitions. Vusi joined the Child and Youth Development programme (CYD) in Grade 11, and after matriculating, he signed up for the Career Development Programme (CDP).
Raised by a single mother, Vusi has always had a soft spot for the advancement of women and children’s rights. He owes all of his success to his mother and wants to make her proud, he explains. While growing up, he picked up art as a hobby. It quickly became a driving passion as he learnt to express his emotions on canvas. Today, he is in the process of registering an entertainment company that will allow for artistic expression across multiple fields. RYD Entertainment has already started making a profit. “I was only 17 years old and I managed to sell an artwork for R280. At that time, I could not believe my luck! But I knew that I was sitting on a gold mine”, he added.
Currently, RYD Entertainment houses five artists, three of whom are Afrika Tikkun alumni. Over the festive season, Vusi held his first ever exhibition at the Creative Mentorship Hub in Johannesburg. And success! Vusi sold his most expensive artwork to date for R800. This year promises to yield great opportunities for his business – his next move is completing his company’s registration process, and from there, the sky is the limit.
People with determination are those who get up and keep going, who learn from what went wrong and adjust course, and who believe in themselves despite all obstacles.
At the beginning of 2018, Prime Nchabeleng made a decision to work hard and only focus on getting the best matric results. “I struggled in grade 11 with my favourite subjects and I didn’t want the same for matric, hence I took all the help I can get and ended my matric with a bachelor degree pass with three distinctions,” said Prime. For Prime the year was not without its challenges. At the beginning of the year, Prime had to move from home to be close to school. This could have derailed him but he decided to focus on what was important. He surrounded himself with an army of support. This included facilitators from Afrika Tikkun, who offered him tutoring, career counselling, computers to apply to universities and for bursaries, as well as a library to study through the night during the final exams.
Prime was selected to represent Afrika Tikkun in Germany in June 2018. “I took my books to Germany and studied at night while others were sleeping. I didn’t want to be left behind,” said Prime.
Prime’s three distinctions in Physical Sciences, Life Sciences, and Life Orientation earned him an entry into Wits University to study Chemical Engineering, with funding through a bursary. Explaining his choice of subject, Prime said, “the decision came from the love of creating things. I want to be part of the solution to the problems the world is facing like the petrol hikes. I believe I can one day come up with an alternative to petrol.”
