- SBU DLAMINI is the new chairman of the recently formed BelRosView civic organisation to hold the municipality accountable for poor service-delivery issues. He is also the founding director of Goods of Social Development Deeds Foundation, a human rights activist, community leader and entrepreneur.
Born in Durban, he now calls Bellair home. He is studying social development and is passionate about youth empowerment and mentoring young people to actively participate in shaping their own future. He has worked with other social partners on various levels and participated in several leadership, civic engagement, and peace-building programmes.
The foundation is a not-for-profit organisation set up to help tackle youth unemployment and upskill and help young people to empower themselves to earn a living and deal with social issues like teenage pregnancies, violence and dependency on drugs and alcohol.
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“It provides educational and social serviceS to people aged 17 to 35 years old who live in the Queensburgh area. We plan to build centres to provide a safe haven that offers opportunities for the youth to attend classes; receive counselling; use computers; learn vocational skills; practise music, dance and drama; plant and grow their own food and even receive nutritious meals,” said Sbu.
“We hope to build partnerships with local, provincial, national and international stakeholders to help the youth, especially those from a disadvantaged background who otherwise would not have had the chance for post-secondary education and vocational training.”
These youngsters will get assistance to obtain skills and qualifications in business development, tourism, manufacturing and engineering sectors, skilled trades, education, banking, youth work, computer technology and other businesses and industries.
“Our vision is to build young people who are empowered to acquire skills to transform their futures, are enabled to explore new paths for themselves and have the confidence to follow those paths.”
The foundation provides career guidance and mentoring, counselling services, health education, life-skills training and support for self-improvement through its various programmes, including development, mentoring, sports, creative writing, computer skills, coding and artificial intelligence (AI).
It uses various methods of empowering the youth, including song and dance, drama, poetry and storytelling as a way to help them better understand and overcome the challenges they face and to set career and life goals for their future.
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“Some are linked to higher education and training institutions to learn their chosen careers, or sent to short vocational training courses, where those chosen are enrolled into learnership programmes. Others are taught computer skills, such as coding and AI, or agricultural skills and farming, fish farming and other aquatic skills and opportunities.
“There are many in our area who have passed matric but do not have access to funds or the knowledge of how they can continue their studies and reach for their goals. We work closely with local higher education institutions to place deserving young people.”
The foundation also gets businesses and training institutions to offer short courses for skills such as mechanics, bricklaying, plumbing, fitting and turning, welding, carpentry, machine operation and boiler-making.
“Planting and farming are therapeutic ways to get people to start believing in themselves while putting food on the table. We have several small-scale farming projects used by the youth as centres for learning new skills in farming and agriculture.
“We are in the process of acquiring more land to allow young people to tap into opportunities in the agricultural sector, and we intend to introduce courses in poultry farming, pig farming, goat farming and other livestock farming.
“We are keen to open young people to the fields of fish farming and other aquatic opportunities. We hope to help young people learn critical skills, so they can feed their families and make a living.”
For more information, call Sbusiso on 067 606 3575 or email sbuflows@gmail.com.
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