Thousands of children and young people in South Africa face unimaginable hardship every day. Afrika Tikkun was founded in 1994 with the goal of developing and uplifting young people in disadvantaged communities in South Africa. Nelson Mandela was Afrika Tikkun’s Patron-in-Chief and remains the Patron in chief in memoriam. He called the work of the charity a ‘miracle’.
Phumla Dlodlo
Afrika Tikkun is a non-profit child and youth development organisation that provides interventions according to a holistic and integrated understanding of the developmental needs of children and youth. This is embedded in its vision to end child poverty in South Africa and enable young people to become well-rounded, social and economically empowered individuals.
Through its Cradle-to-Career-360° (C2C-360°) model, Afrika Tikkun focuses on wraparound development solutions to enrich and empower young people from ages 0-35. The C2C 360° model has led to outstanding outcomes in school-readiness, secondary school pass rates, job placements, job preparedness, leadership, and youth civic engagement.
Belron has a long connection with South Africa. Our original business, Jacobs & Dander, began selling glass in Cape Town in 1897, but this isn’t the only reason we choose to support Afrika Tikkun. South Africa is one of the poorest countries in the world with 57% of the population living in poverty. What’s more, over a third of young people aged 15 to 35 are unemployed, with no access to meaningful support. Our partnership with Afrika Tikkun enables us to make a difference with real care.
Carole Day, CEO of Afrika Tikkun UK
In honour of our deep relationship with Afrika Tikkun, every year the whole Belron global community comes together to raise money for the charity with a triathlon event known as The Spirit of Belron Challenge (SOBC). Each time Afrika Tikkun enter a team and bring with them four young people. Since 2002 Belron has donated over €20.8 million to Afrika Tikkun.
Provided aid to over 31,000 children aged two to six, and a further 76,000 children in school aged seven to eighteen. Trained over 21,000 young adults, 10,000 of whom have been placed into work.
Supported over 83,000 families through its social services, served more than 23 million meals and provided over 81,000 primary healthcare interventions.
Please visit the Afrika Tikkun website to hear more about the work they do.
Tshegofatso Molefe