Unemployment in South Africa is at crisis levels, with youth most affected. Too many young people lack the networks, confidence, and work-readiness skills needed to secure meaningful jobs.
Common Good’s Job Journey programme is changing that. Delivered through trusted community partners, Job Journey equips unemployed youth with practical tools (like CVs, interview practice, and job-search strategies) while also building confidence, resilience, and hope. Local coaches — trained leaders from NGOs, churches, and community groups — walk alongside participants, offering mentorship that extends beyond the classroom.
Since launching in 2023, Job Journey has partnered with 46 organisations across 5 provinces, trained 136 coaches, and supported more than 1,800 young people. Many graduates have gone on to secure jobs, internships, or further study, breaking cycles of unemployment and poverty.
Your support will help us:
- Train 10 new community coaches to equip 100 unemployed youth within 12 months.
- Provide resources, workbooks, and catering for the onboarding of our Job Journey coaches.
- Develop and maintain a Digital CV Tool, giving every graduate a professional CV to strengthen job applications.
This isn’t a once-off intervention — it’s a sustainable pipeline of opportunity. Once trained, community partners continue delivering Job Journey year after year, multiplying the impact in their communities.
With your donation, more young South Africans can access the support they need to find meaningful employment, dignity, and a brighter future.
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Zayaan’s Story: From Participant to Facilitator
Zayaan Stevens, known by friends as “Zaza,” grew up in Manenberg, Cape Town. She passed a Job Journey replication partner every day on her way to school, never dreaming that the work readiness course they offered would one day change her life. After matriculating, a friend encouraged her to attend Job Journey, a 9-day work readiness course designed to connect youth who are not in education, employment, or training to career pathways.
Through Job Journey, Zayaan discovered her passion for facilitation and built confidence to overcome her social anxiety. The networks and support she found through the programme connected her to Amandla Safe Hub—an organisation where she now works, that combines youth development and sport, two of her greatest passions.
Zayaan describes Job Journey as her “first step into forever.” Now, as she is being trained and equipped to facilitate work readiness courses in her own community as a Job Journey coach, she carries a deep hope for others. “I want people to see that not every door is
locked—you just need to show up and be willing to find yourself. That’s what Job Journey did for me—and that’s what I want for others.”
Job Journey 4 weeks, 1 days ago
