03/08/2026
Why NextGen Voices Exists
When I was in high school, choosing subjects for Grade 10 felt like just another task.
In fact, one of the teachers at the time asked us to stand in a line, split us into two groups and instructed the group on the left that they would be doing pure mathematics and sciences while the group on the right would be the commerce group.
She simply said there were too many of us to do maths and we weren't all cut out for it. Very few, if any of us at the time truly understood the magnitude of that moment. How that random allocation would affect our future studies, career options, or professional journeys.
Nobody sat us down and helped us connect our interests, talents and passions to real opportunities.
Many young people still face that reality today.
Some learners think success only exists in careers such as engineering, medicine or accounting. While these careers are important, they are not the only paths to success.
What about the learner who loves storytelling and wants to work in media? And the one who is passionate about tourism and dreams of becoming a tour guide, travel consultant or tourism entrepreneur?
What about the learner who enjoys art, music, design, hospitality, education, agriculture or community development?
Every learner deserves the opportunity to discover where their strengths and passions can lead them. That is why NextGen Voices exists. We help young people make informed decisions about their future by exposing them to different career pathways, study opportunities and role models who inspire them to dream bigger.
In just our first year, we have:
✅ Expanded from a pilot workshop at one school to reaching learners across five schools,
✅ Provided career guidance and subject selection support to more than 550 learners,
✅ Increased access to information about career and study opportunities that many learners would otherwise never encounter,
✅ Mobilised 1,722 reading materials through our Little Libraries Project,
✅ Distributed more than 200 books through our Little Libraries project.
For us, career guidance is not about telling learners what to become.
It is about helping them discover who they are, what they love, and where they can make their greatest contribution.
Because every learner deserves more than just being told to choose subjects. Every learner deserves the chance to choose a future.
The Journey Continues.
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