Belron projects

Belron® funds

In 2009 MaAfrika Tikkun received €511.000 from Belron®. The money raised both in sponsorship of the London Triathlon and through other fundraising activities throughout the year such as the Christmas raffle and the Autoglass/Boomerang campaign. Part of the funding was allocated towards the building of a new centre for Orphans and Vulnerable children in Alex and the rest towards our Youth Development programmes.

The role that Belron® plays in the fight against HIV/AIDs and the plight of the poverty stricken communities of South Africa is invaluable. Belron® has ensured that the vulnerable children, are also being cared for and given an opportunity to uplift themselves from poverty and disease.

Progress on the new Orphans and Vulnerable children Centre in Alexandra.

Thanks to the support of Belron® last year, MaAfrika Tikkun has been able to expand their Early Childhood and Youth Development programmes at their newly built community centres. This year Belron's funding will go towards continued expansion of these programmes.

Early Childhood Development and Youth Development programmes

Early Childhood Development refers to programmes for children aged from 0-9 years old.  It encompasses a holistic approach to child development that recognises the importance of addressing a child's health, nutrition, education and psycho-social needs, as well as considering additional environmental factors within the family and the community.

Currently there are 432 children who are benefiting from the services but with the development of the new centres MaAfrika Tikkun plans to nearly double the number of children to 860.  

MaAfrika Tikkun  also addresses the needs of vulnerable school-going young people by offering a selection of after-school support. MaAfrika Tikkun and its local community partners provide a comprehensive range of nutritional, educational and recreational services, including homework support, art, dance, drama, sports, life skills and career counselling.

Currently 250 young people take part in the Youth Development programme in Alexandra and the services will be formalised and expanded when the new centre opens soon. The centre is well underway and in particular the homework assistance that is currently offered will be based in a permanent learning centre. 

The next phase in the development in Orange Farm will be the completion and opening of the new Youth Development building which should be ready in July this year.

The learning centre in Diepsloot providing remedial support and general homework and study skills support is functioning well. Currently 267 young people benefit from life skills training, homework support and use of the computer centre. MaAfrika Tikkun has over 10,000 books with a librarian to manage them and over 1,300 children and community members visit the library each month. MaAfrika TIkkun will also begin to train community health workers in child health care and by the end of the year aim to be assisting 200 children and 200 adults per month
.