“The Siyazenzela Programme has brought back my hunger to achieve, the enthusiasm, the willingness, the lost hope, and the belief in myself that says, ‘I can’. I was dead and lost and had given up but the Wilderness Foundation found me and freely provided the Siyazenzela course that brought me back to life.” – Siyazenzela Graduate
Early in 2023, Wilderness Foundation Africa and the Mitomeni River Lodge (Pty) Ltd. / Jock Safari Lodge (managed by The Caleo Foundation) entered into a funding agreement through which WFA’s Youth Development Programme would implement two Siyazenzela Employability and Wellness Training programmes in aid of disadvantaged youth from the communities surrounding the Kruger National Park in Mpumalanga.
These two courses were conducted on the boarders of the National Park during the months of May and June 2023 and focussed on enhancing the learners’ emotional and social wellness, occupational and financial capabilities as well as their physical and environmental understanding. The training also covered comprehensive sections on entrepreneurship and the fundamentals of retail.
In order to introduce the learners to the beauty and healing power of nature, both groups were taken on a game drive in the Kruger National Park, which was conducted by the programme funder.
The project concluded with 38 learners graduating at a joyful ceremony conducted at the Berg-en-Dal Conference Centre on the 29th of June 2023.
