Training against gender-based violence taking place at Phomolong and Isithame

Get Informed Youth Development Centre aims to put an end to gender-based violence in Tembisa by hosting classes at Isithame and Phomolong. The classes started in the month of October 2019 and will end in April 2020.

The organisation was established in 2012 in response to the needs identified among the youth. It aimed to provide a critical link between personal development and job creation in order to promote a sustainable livelihood.

Get Informed Youth Development Centre utilises the municipal’s youth centre to execute all of its activities.

Samantha Vilakazi, training and development officer, said the centre ensures responsiveness to the needs of school learners through relevant basic training, like life skills and computer skills in order to increase chances of employment and marketability.

“The Get Informed Youth Development Centre’s vision is to have an informed youth that is independent and has access to opportunities to exercise their social and entrepreneurial skills to develop sustainable change.

“We promote health and well-being in the community by facilitating awareness sessions through meetings and workshops. These sessions aim at empowering communities on matters related to gender-based violence, family violence prevention and prevention of sexual abuse in children,” said Vilakazi.

Vilakazi also said the centre has partnered with PEPFAR in empowering women in society, and especially young people by tackling the gender norms in and around the township.

“Through these workshops, we are creating activists. We have trained six facilitators to work on the fight against gender and community norms through the SASA model (Start, Awareness, Support and Action) which was introduced to us by WITS Reproductive Health institute. This is the model we use to identify ourselves before going into the community.

“To build on the fight against GBV, we also gave self-defence training, especially for women since they are the most vulnerable. We were joined by Ekurhuleni social workers who encouraged the youth to start their own businesses, in our last training. They explained the processes of the different types of businesses.”

The PEPFAR project focuses on community mobilisation and norms changes under the SASA model initiative in the context of a response to HIV and GBV. The project provides technical assistance through capacity building of selected ward committees, traditional/local leadership, community-based organisations and other NGO partners.

Vilakazi added that the SASA training objectives are to create a safe environment for communities and individuals to raise challenges and gaps around gender-based violence and HIV prevention.

“We aim for desired outcomes, which are to have improved level of knowledge and understanding of the impact of GBV and HIV in communities; as well as improved working relationship between local service providers and communities. Improved visibility and commitment by community leaders on addressing GBV and HIV prevention with a target group from Ward three, six, eight, 12, 13 and 90,” added Vilakazi.