Khulisa scoops international award for its work in Alex
NPO Khulisa Social Solutions has scooped an international award for its community upliftment work in Alexandra and other communities in South Africa.
A South African NPO which has done extensive community work in Alexandra has scooped a prestigious international award for its charitable work which spans close to three decades.
Khulisa Social Solutions, a non-profit organisation with more than 20 years of empowering underprivileged South African communities to unlock their potential, has won the prominent Corporate LiveWire ‘Youth Support NPO of the Year’ award for 2022/2023.
According to Lesley-Ann van Selm, founder and managing director of Khulisa, “This recognition demonstrates the impact that Khulisa has had on South Africans since its inception, and is a tremendous icebreaker for the amazing work that we are excited to continue in 2023.”
Last year, Khulisa was selected as a finalist in the International Peace Awards category for addressing poverty and homelessness, peace-making interventions, and youth empowerment interventions in marginalised communities.
Khulisa’s flagship projects include sustainable livelihood programmes focused on communities in North West and Limpopo. Khulisa launched this programme to implement self-sufficiency systems meant to improve the overall quality of life in these communities.
Another one of its projects was the Resilient Youth in Stressed Environments which was a 5-year multinational research project that explored patterns of resilience among young people in changing environments with a particular focus on Secunda and eMbalenhle in Mpumalanga.
A research was undertaken through a partnership with the seasoned research psychologist, Sheri Errington, who is a research associate at the University of Johannesburg’s Centre for Social Development, to try and understand the socio-economic conditions that prevail and tend to exacerbate gender-based violence.
Another project known as the Alexandra Youth Entrepreneurial Summit, made possible by a partnership with the Greater Alexandra Chamber of Commerce, Qalisa Hub, 243 Pro-network, Ubuntu Business, and TuksNovation, tackled issues affecting the youth in the township and how best those could be solved.
Khulisa also held a series of clinic workshops around criminal expungement and processes, which will continue later in 2023 following the overwhelming response received in the township.
The Alexandra Peace-Making Project, which was a direct response to civil unrest including the looting and violence that took place in July 2021, has resulted in 35 community peacemakers trained to deal with conflicts in the township.
Van Selm also outlined the Streetscapes Project which has been offering long-term community-based rehabilitation that uniquely combines housing, work-based rehabilitation, and the necessary psychosocial support in the Western Cape spanning close to a decade.
She said Khulisa contended with 30 000 other nominees who were submitted from more than 30 countries across the globe and a judging panel which comprised entrepreneurs, legal professionals, and consultants, carefully appraised and selected the winners across various award categories.
“We would like to dedicate this award and our other recent recognitions to our stakeholders including other fellow not-for-profit organisations, community members, our funders, and partners,” concluded van Selm.
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