Action Volunteers Africa

18/06/2026

🌍💙 A Warm AVA Welcome! 💙🌍

The AVA team is delighted to welcome our two new interns from Hong Kong, Sumey and Alison!

Over the next few months, until August, they will be working alongside our team and supporting the delivery of our programmes as we continue to empower young people and create opportunities for growth.

We are excited to have them join the AVA family and look forward to the fresh perspectives, enthusiasm, and experiences they will bring. We hope their time with us will be filled with meaningful learning, cultural exchange, and unforgettable memories.

Please join us in giving Sumey and Alison a warm welcome to South Africa and to the AVA team! 🎉✨

Thank you to Wubuntu for the collaboration.

11/06/2026

As we continue celebrating Youth Month, we invited one of our YearBeyond volunteers, Olwethu Jezile, from one of our Khayelitsha partner schools, to reflect on her journey. This is what she had to say:

“ Since joining the YearBeyond programme under Action Volunteers Africa I have grown significantly in confidence, responsibility and teamwork. Through tutoring and youth development activities, I learned how to plan and facilitate sessions, communicate effectively and support the learners in their growth. The programme taught me that leadership is not about having all the answers ,It is about showing up consistently, serving others and helping them reach their full potential.

I joined the Catch-up programme because I was looking for a personal and professional growth. I knew I had potential, but I needed guidance, practical skills and a space where I could develop them. The programme is providing that through mentorship and meaningful responsibilities. I joined for the opportunity and so far I am enjoying being helpful to the learners and assisting them into becoming the best version of themselves while they improve academically.”

AVA is proud to provide these young people a safe space to become the best version of themselves.

YearBeyond

05/06/2026

Youth month: The future is being built right here 🌟✨

Ava celebrates youth month and there is no better way to honour it than by sharing some of the work that our young people do.

Below is our YearBoneers who spent the week helping learners unlock Literacy and Numeracy around Khayelitsha and Mitchells plain.

This is a glimpse of what happens during the afterschool space. Young people making learning fun while working on building learners confidence.

Drop a ❤️ in the comments to celebrate them or tag a young changemaker that you know.




YearBeyond

05/06/2026

We were happy to have them!

21/05/2026

On 19 May 2026, AVA collaborated with Deloitte to celebrate their annual Volunteer Day.

In partnership with Deloitte, AVA hosted a Mobile Corporate Career Café (MCCC) aimed at equipping youth with meaningful skills development opportunities to enhance their employability. The sessions presented on the day included Real Work Readiness, Personal Branding, and Project Management 101.

This marked AVA’s third consecutive year collaborating with Deloitte in celebration of their annual Volunteer Day, reflecting the ongoing commitment of both organisations to empowering youth through career guidance and skills development initiatives.

AVA would like to extend its gratitude to the Deloitte staff for contributing to the empowerment of the youth.

A special thank you YMCA Cape Town IseeU Columba Leadership The LifeMatters Foundation for allowing some of their youth to join us on the day.

07/05/2026

🚐✨ The Mobile Career Café was on the road in the Overberg!

We visited Genadendal, Greyton, and Botrivier, supporting 148 youth with career guidance, work readiness skills, and the Career Pathway Test—helping them gain clarity on their future and what employers value.

A comment from a youth that attended the MCC in Botrivier:
"When I reflect on my experience attending the MCC, I can confidently say that it was an incredibly positive and enriching experience. I learnt a great deal, particularly about how simple it is to create a profile on an online job portal. In the past, I felt intimidated by the process, but with the guidance and support of the MCC team, I gained the confidence to create a professional profile and apply for opportunities independently.
I now also feel equipped to assist others with creating their own profiles. In fact, just yesterday, while I was at the library, another young person who had attended the MCC with me asked for assistance with applying to a college. This demonstrated to me the meaningful impact and inspiration the MCC brought to the youth who attended the event in Botrivier.
I sincerely hope this will not be the last time your team visits us. You have planted a seed of confidence and empowerment within the youth in our community."

Thank you Hazel Apollis , and Lauren Lollos Phillips for making theses visits possible.

13/04/2026

As part of their Honours Outreach & Community Involvement Programme, 4 UCT students is collaborating with AVA to do sessions on Digital Skills with our The LifeMatters Foundation interns. They will specifically focus on Digital Literacy Skills to help youth improve the running of their existing or future side hustles. This past Friday, the team focused on the power of Digital Marketing and Branding.

02/04/2026

Our YeBoneers attended a 4 day Technical Training with their mentors to learn about the Literacy and Numeracy learning material they will use with the learners on the YearBeyond programme in term 2.

While at the training, the YeBoneers were exposed to many methods they can use to make math fun for learners. They also learnt valuable literacy activities they will do with the learners to help strengthen their ability to read for meaning.

We wish our youth well as they prepare to make YeBo Magic in their schools!

25/03/2026

News24 hosted a 2 day On The Record Summit in Cape Town last week where one of our alumni (Zhaida Juries) was featured in their documentary to share her struggles with unemployment and the birth of an initiative she and her husband hopes to launch, WattWallet

We have asked Zhaida Juries to share her experience of the event, and her reflection was as follows:

"Attending the News24 event was an exciting experience, made even more meaningful when I received the agenda—it felt like a significant opportunity was opening up. Seeing myself featured in the documentary and listening to the subsequent panel discussion was both humbling and rewarding. I am grateful to have contributed to highlighting the realities of unemployment that millions face every day.
Being offered a job on the very first day—during the break following the documentary screening—was truly beyond my expectations. I am deeply appreciative of this opportunity, as it represents not only employment but also a pathway for personal and professional growth. I believe it will equip me with valuable skills to further develop our business and help take it to greater heights. ."

We are happy that us connecting Zhaida to News24 not only got her story featured, but resulted in her and her husband finding employment. We wish them well as they continue to develop their WattWallet App!

20/03/2026

There is ONE question South Africa must answer: how do we create more jobs?

News24 has initiated a series of discussions involving South Africa’s sharpest minds, experts, and practitioners to come up with practical solutions on how we can change our economic path.

These solutions were presented the past 2 days at the On the Record summit in Cape Town. AVAs programmes was profiled at the conference in a video produced recently by News24:

"Finding Hope" was created for News24’s On The Record Summit 2026, focusing on practical solutions to create jobs and foster a more equitable, prosperous, an...