Equipping Youth for Active Leadership and Community Action to Reduce School Drop-outs, Conflict and Poverty in 3 townships near Johannesburg

The project utilised a phased approach: EDUCATE (the my.voice civic education programme), EMPOWER (the my.initiative mentoring programme), and CONNECT (a large-scale expo event). This resulted in the implementation of seven youth-led initiatives, including substance abuse awareness, mental health clubs, and environmental clean-up campaigns. 76 direct high school learners successfully completed the core leadership programme, while the “Youth Voices Event” reached a total of 200 attendees, including students from eight schools and various community leaders. Graduates of the programme are integrated into the my.voice Alumni Network, which provides an ongoing support structure for continuous civic engagement and access to educational and professional opportunities.The project demonstrated high impact, with 100% of participants reporting an increase in leadership skills and 99% noting improved critical thinking and confidence. It successfully navigated local challenges, such as community water outages and school schedule changes, through resilient partnerships with target schools.