A number of key panellists have just been confirmed for a series of Think Tank breakfasts on rural economic development, hosted by the National Development Agency and Kaelo Worldwide Media, supported by corporate partners MTN and ABSA.

15 year old Siphiwe Shabangu from Killarney, Soweto loves playing soccer and figures he is quite good at the game. So when his friend Sam Mngomezulu invited him to a camp where he could play football, Siphiwe could not resist. Believing he was only going to be playing soccer, he was pleasantly surprised when the Castrol Skillz Holiday Programme curriculum began teaching him about HIV/Aids in a way that was just as much fun as playing soccer.

The Castrol Skillz Holiday Programme has caught the attention of other businesses, whose contributions have made it possible to further the impact of this community-building educational campaign.

Children from Lefaragatlhe Primary School in Rustenburg, North West Province, were at the heart of football fever on Tuesday 22 June when they received a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to attend the Mexico vs. Uruguay match at Royal Bafokeng Stadium with Hyundai South Africa.

To further the reach and impact of the Castrol Skillz Holiday Programme, Rio Tinto invested in five camps in Phalaborwa, Richards Bay and Soweto. The camps use the powerful impact of football to deliver life skills and important messages about HIV/Aids to participating children and the broader community. Through an engaging and creative football based curriculum these messages are delivered in a language that young teenagers understand and can easily relate to. 

It’s not uncommon for casino groups like Peermont Global to give away big sums of money every day, but on 10 March, a special event was held at Emporers Palace in which seven donations of R100 000 to seven schools was given as part of their Peermont School Support Programme (PSSP). But why? 

Underdevelopment, a lack of industry and resources in rural communities are very real challenges in South Africa. Innovation is often seen as part of the solution to addressing these challenges. The Bulungula Incubator in Xhora Mouth, Eastern Cape, is a remarkable example of how innovation can turn an entire community into a self sustaining entity. The story of Bulungula and how Old Mutual’s support has transformed the community will be shown on Kaelo-Stories of Hope on, SABC1 on Sunday 31 January 2010 at 12h30pm.

Clayton Wadrif could simply not afford to study any further after matric so he took up a welding apprenticeship, earning R50 a week. Not content to settle with his lot in life, he applied for a bursary at the Big Fish School of Digital Film Making, participating in an intensive two year film making programme in Johannesburg. With the assistance of Absa, Clayton has been so inspired by the support he received that he took action in his own Welkom community. Watch this week’s episode to see how his experiences at Big Fish have inspired Clayton to making difference.

From dealing with the impact of HIV/Aids, to unemployment there is no doubt that South Africa’s youth face a multitude of challenges. This week’s Kaelo-Stories of Hope takes a look at a variety of initiatives that are focused on alleviating some of these challenges.