206 Burger Street, Pietermaritzburg, 3201
Tel: 033 3947807, Fax: 3947841
E-Mail: general@tembaletu.co.za

Tembaletu Trust is celebrating its 20^th Anniversary: 1989 – 2009

Menu

The Human Rights, Democracy and Development (HRDD) Project

Tembaletu is committed to transformation and development towards a truly democratic society through the promotion of a culture of human rights practice and community development.

The overeaching theme of the HRDD Project is: making human rights and democracy real to ordinary people. This goal is addressed through promoting the spread of:

ABET Classes

Each year Tembaletu responds to a demand from members of the public to offer literacy classes for adults.  Classes are conducted in 3 learning areas:

 In addition to these fundamental learning areas, adult learners may also participate in a variety of elective learning areas that suit their particular needs or interests.

 Some examples of elective learning areas are: Human Rights Awareness, Livelihoods and Home-based Care-giving. 

FET Programmes

Graduate Workplace Experiential Learning

Each year, Tembaletu receives numerous requests from unemployed but qualified graduates from universities, technikons and FET colleges, for workplace experiential learning and training.

 Tembaletu recognises the desperate need and the value of such graduates and has responded by offering an intensive graduate workplace experiential learning programme. 

 Graduates are offered a six-month experiential learning and training programme.  The graduates are also supported by Tembaletu’s RIC Career Desk, in their on-going quest to find appropriate employment. 

The Tembaletu HBC (Home-Based Care) Project

The scourge of HIV/AIDS is being felt with growing intensity amongst members of the rural communities with which Tembaletu works. Our adult literacy learners are daily having to face someone they know, either within their family or neighbouring home, that has fallen victim to the HIV/AIDS pandemic. 

In response to calls from our literacy learners about Tembaletu’s role in fighting the battle against HIV/AIDS, we developed our HBC Project and initiated it, drawing on the learners themselves, in the Stoffelton community.  Fifteen (15) ABET learners who attend our literacy classes through our HRDD Programme are enrolled in this Project. 

Each caregiver cares for three (3) patients in a week.  A local coordinator monitors and provides support to the caregivers. Two caregivers were identified to undergo specialised HIV/AIDS and trauma counselling.

An important aspect of the HBC programme is networking with the local clinic and stakeholders.  The local clinic has agreed to supply the caregivers with HBC kits and food parcels, for use with their patients.

 Monthly in-service training is given to the caregivers, to help refresh their skills and to help identify potential problems that might hinder them, in the role as caregivers. 

Short Non-Formal (Technical) Skills Training Courses

Through partnerships with technical skills providers, Tembaletu is able to offer unemployed people the opportunity to acquire theoretical and practical skills training in a variety of construction and related technical skills. 

Computer Literacy Skills Training

Tembaletu offers both adults and youth the opportunity to acquire basic computer literacy skills. 

Learners can receive basic training in the following areas: 

 The aim of the skills training is to enhance the job-finding potential of those about to enter the world-of-work.  It also assists people who are employed, to become computer literate thus increasing their potential for promotions.   

Post-training support: Tembaletu’s Computer Centre

Tembaletu also recognizes the need to sustain the newly acquired computer skills of other learners.  To this end, Tembaletu’s existing Computer Centre was refurbished and turned into a post-training centre. Here, newly trained computer literate users and other members of the community, who do not have access to computer facilities, can practice their newly acquired skills and/or use a computer (with access to the internet) for educational and communication purposes. 

The Computer Centre has upgraded it’s computer hardware and a range of software, inclusive of educational programmes for both, school-going learners and adults.   

Study Skills Training for Matric (Grade 12) Learners

Through a series of study skills workshops, targeting Grade 11 and 12 learners in predominantly rural secondary schools, learners and subject teachers are assisted in acquiring appropriate study skills; exam writing techniques; preparation of  assignments, or projects/portfolios, etc.   

The workshops consist of 4 themes: 

For the last 2 years, learners from Stoffelton, Tugela Ferry and Loskop secondary schools were targeted to attend the workshops.  Educators from the targeted schools are also invited to observe, participate and learn from these workshops. 

In total, approximately 1200 learners and 24 educators benefitted from these workshops.  The participants, educators and other school-going learners are supported by the local Tembaletu RIC (Resource and Information Centre), with information and access to materials used in the workshops, as well as other study skills support materials. 

Career Guidance and Information Provision for Secondary School Learners

The Tembaletu RIC together with its satellite rural-based RICs provide a vital service to secondary school learners, as well as the unemployed youth on career, employment and self-employment opportunities, that are available to them.  Further to the provision of such information and walk-in counselling, career information and counselling workshops are conducted for school-going learners at secondary schools, in the 3 rural communities of Stoffelton, Tugela Ferry and Loskop.  The workshops highlight issues of choice of subjects for Grades 10 to 12 and, the career opportunities open to learners, based on a learner’s choice of school subjects.   

These information workshops also aim to disseminate career information, and address issues such as employment; unemployment and self-employment with the goal of raising the levels of awareness amongst learners, about what opportunities and obstacles they may encounter in accessing the “world-of-work,” and how to maximise their chances for success. 

Human Rights Awareness and Democracy Training for Rural Youth

The Human Rights Awareness and Democracy Training for Rural Youth, compliments our already existing ABET focused Human Rights, Democracy and Development (HRDD) Project. 

This project is implemented at Pietermaritzburg, Stoffelton, Tugela Ferry and Loskop.  Twenty youth, from each site, are recruited to participate in the workshops.  The workshops cover the following themes: 

Each theme is allocated 3 x 3-hour long workshops and participants are given the opportunity to explore each theme with reference to their personal situation, and that of youth generally in their community. 

After each theme is covered, participants plan and engage in an activity through which the learning and experiences they gained from the workshop, is shared with their peers and community. 

The overall intention of this programme is to broaden the levels of Human Rights awareness and practice, in building and strengthening a culture of Human Rights, amongst South African youth, in both rural and urban communities.  

Tembaletu strives to build relationships with Adult Education Practitioners across the world. Consequently, Tembaletu has had the pleasure of hosting international adult education practitioners.

In 2007, Stijn De Cock, an Adult Education Practitioner, from Belgium, did a four-month internship at Tembaletu. He had the opportunity of visiting the different ABET classes at the various satellite centers, to reflect on his South African experience and share his expertise with Tembaletu ABET Educators….

More

Resource And Information Centres (RICs)

The Tembaletu Resource and Information Centre

The Tembaletu Resource and Information Centre (RIC) has been operational for over 12 years.  From its inception, the RIC served a dual function – 

Adults, scholars and out-of-school youth are the primary users and beneficiaries of the RIC. With respect to the youth, the RIC addresses, amongst other, the following needs: 

About 17 000 people, on an annual basis, access the various services of the RIC.  The career information provision service is proving to be a valuable service, especially to unemployed youth who lack fundamental knowledge and skills needed to pursue a career in the very competitive work environment.  This service equips a young person with information that would lead to an informed decision on his/her part.  It also helps prepare the person to enter the world-of-work whether as an entrepreneur or as an employee of an organization 

The RIC is an enabling environment that empowers people and communities to start and develop self-growth by accessing the different services it offers.  Information is packaged in a format that is accessible and in the desired language for the level of literacy of the users.  The RIC continues to play a strong informal educational function to all. 

The RIC houses an extensive range of FET material (matric subject videos, textbooks, study guides, past exam papers, prospectuses of various educational institutions, career and study materials). These resources support matric and FET learners. This service is further enhanced by the career guidance opportunities offered by the Centre.   

Literacy materials (adult easy readers, facilitator guides, posters, games and IEB past exam papers) are available for both educator and learner to use.  These literacy materials and resources are also utilized by externally based ABET learners and facilitators. 

The RIC networks with other academic institutions, organizations and libraries.  This networking assists the RIC to expand and acquire a broader resource base, which in turn, is made available to the users.  

The Naledi Stoffelton RIC

This RIC is situated at Stoffelton, in the Impendle area, 100 km from Pietermaritzburg.  From its humble beginning in June 2001, the RIC has now grown and become an integral part of the community.  The RIC was initially established with the primary aim of supporting ABET learners sustain their newly acquired reading and writing skills.  However, the services of the RIC have grown and have been extended to the community at large.  Scholars, out-of-school youth, young children, adult learners and members of the community use the RIC on a frequent basis.

 Quarterly stakeholder meetings are held where the community decides on and prioritises social, economic, and educational issues they want to be addressed via the public seminars. To date, the public seminars have addressed issues around stock theft, careers and the world-of-work, government pensions and nature conservation. The seminars prove to be very popular and are well attended by the community.

 The RIC offers another valuable service to ABET learners who are engaged in livelihood activities.  This service was extended to the rest of the Stoffelton community as people recognised the benifits of such a service. 

The Loskop RIC

The Loskop RIC was established in 2005.  It is housed at Mjwayeli HP School in Loskop (Estcourt area), 130km from Pietermaritzburg.  The users of the RIC are ABET learners, scholars and out-of-school youth, members of the local community and preschool children. 

The Loskop RIC also holds stakeholder meetings in which the local community prioritises socio-economic issues they want to address via the public seminars.  To date, the public seminars have addressed issues around spousal and child abuse, careers and the world-of-work, and gender (women) rights.

Like the Stoffelton RIC, the Loskop RIC also offers a valuable support service to all people engaged in livelihood activities.

The Tugela Ferry RIC

The Tugela Ferry RIC was established in 2005.  It is situated at Ebathenjini Tribal Court, Tugela Ferry, 150km from Pietermaritzburg.  The users of the RIC are scholars and out-of-school youth; ABET learners, pensioners and members from local communities.

Stakeholder meetings are also held to prioritise socio-economic issues that would be addressed through public seminars.  To date, the public seminars addressed issues around transport (roads) and housing.

Like the Loskop and Stoffelton RICs, the Tugela Ferry RIC also offers a supportive service to ABET learners and community members who are engaged in livelihood activities and projects.

The Dalton RIC

This RIC started in February 2007 and is situated at Njengabantu School.  The aim of the RIC is to support ABET learners at Njengabantu, Jikijiki and Dayingubo.  The RIC offers support to the local communities via skills training around business skills, livelihoods and Human Rights. 

The RIC holds quarterly public seminars to address issues affecting the community as a whole. To date, the public seminars addressed issues around pensions and grants; creating a viable working relationship between the community and the SAPS; soil conservation; and access to government grants for communal farming.

Like the Loskop, Stoffelton, and Tugela Ferry RICs, the Dalton RIC also offers a supportive service to ABET learners and community members who are engaged in livelihood activities and projects.

Conference Facilities and Office Space