Young Africa Zimbabwe

“I told Dorien, ‘I do not know how to answer a phone.’
And she said, ‘No, I will teach you how.”

In 2002, Mitchelle Chitsinde came to Young Africa as a shy young woman trying to build a small dressmaking business after life at home became difficult following her parents’ divorce.

“There was no electricity at home. It affected my business.”

After attending a Young Africa and ILO entrepreneurship training, Mitchelle received a small loan and started sewing school uniforms.
Then Raj and Dorien, the founders of Young Africa, welcomed her into their home and later offered her a job as a receptionist during the early days of Young Africa Chitungwiza.

“I was too shy to even answer when Raj tried to speak to me.”
But with support, encouragement and opportunity, Mitchelle slowly found her confidence. Today, more than 20 years later, she serves as an Administration Assistant at Young Africa Epworth Skills Centre. And why has she stayed all these years?

“Because I want every young person who comes to Young Africa to feel valued and seen, just like I was.”

As we celebrate 25 years of youth empowerment, we celebrate stories like Mitchelle’s. 💛

Strengthening Integrated Support for Vulnerable Communities in Beitbridge

Young Africa Zimbabwe was proud to join the HIV and SRHR Knows No Borders partners for a multi-partner field engagement in Beitbridge, alongside the Embassy of the Netherlands in Zimbabwe, IOM Zimbabwe, Save the Children in Zimbabwe, and Family Support Trust. The engagement was led by the newly appointed Dutch Ambassador, Matthijs van Eeuwen.

The visit brought together different partners around one shared goal: strengthening integrated support for vulnerable communities through migration services, health, sexual and reproductive health and rights, livelihoods, and youth empowerment interventions.

Through our partnership with IOM Zimbabwe, Young Africa Zimbabwe has supported 430 young people in Beitbridge with vocational skills training, life skills, and sexual and reproductive health education. This holistic approach equips young people with practical skills, knowledge, and confidence to make informed decisions and pursue sustainable livelihoods.

This collaboration reflects the importance of coordinated programming that responds to immediate community needs while investing in long-term resilience, dignity, and opportunity for young people.

Someone’s life is about to change on 5 June 2026.

It could be yours. Registration for the Young Africa July 2026 Intake is opening at Young Africa Chitungwiza and Young Africa Epworth Skills Centres

This is your chance to train in skills that open real opportunities:

🟢 Motor Vehicle Mechanics
🟢 Hairdressing
🟢 Beauty Therapy
🟢 Solar Technology
🟢 Welding
🟢 Catering
🟢 Garment Construction
🟢 Building & Block Laying
🟢 Plumbing & Drain Laying
🟢 Electronics
🟢 Panel Beating & Spray Painting
🟢 ECD Teacher Paraprofessional
🟢 Baking etc.

Course Duration:
🟢 6 Months on campus
🟢 4 Months Industrial Attachment
Bring your National ID or Valid Passport for registration.

For inquiries:
🟢 0780510619

One decision can completely shift your future. Make sure you are there. 💛

In 2001, a centre opened in Chitungwiza with almost nothing except a belief that every young Zimbabwean no matter where they were born, no matter what they had been told about their future, deserved a real skill and a real shot at life.

25 years later, we are still here. Over 50,000 young people later, we are still here.

This year, we celebrate 25 years of Young Africa Zimbabwe Chitungwiza centre. And we want YOU to be part of this story.

Tell us: where were YOU in 2001? What were you doing? What were you dreaming of?

Your story and ours started at the same time. Let us celebrate together.

The concrete is set and the containers are down. What you are watching go up at our Young Africa Chitungwiza Skills Centre is an ICT hub, and it is being built with one thing in mind: you.

Together with Uncommon, we are creating a space where young people aged 18 to 28 will train free of charge for 12 months in Product Design, Software Engineering, Digital Marketing and Entrepreneurship. Not theory for the sake of it. Training with full-time employment in the tech industry as the finish line.

The hub is not ready yet. But applications for the Chitungwiza Tech Bootcamp 2026 are open right now, and they close 22 May 2026. So, while we are still building the space, you can already be securing your place in it.

Apply at [email protected] or drop your CV and cover letter in person at Young Africa Chitungwiza Skills Centre. 💛

This morning, our campus came alive with movement, mindfulness, and wellness as students and staff joined a special Yoga Day session hosted in partnership with the India in Zimbabwe (Embassy of India, Harare). 🇮🇳🇿🇼

The session reflected this year’s International Day of Yoga theme: “Yoga for Wellness, Wisdom & World Peace.”

Through guided breathing, stretching, and mindful practice, students were reminded that wellness goes beyond physical health. It also nurtures mental clarity, emotional balance, discipline, and inner peace. In today’s fast-changing world, spaces that encourage mindfulness and wellbeing are more important than ever for young people.

At Young Africa Zimbabwe, we continue to champion holistic youth development by creating opportunities that support both personal growth and wellbeing.

We are grateful to the Indian Embassy in Zimbabwe for their continued partnership in promoting wellness and mindfulness among young people.

According to ZimStat’s 2022 Labour Force Survey, more than 2.5 million Zimbabwean youth (15–34) are NEET. Nationally, the rate is 50%, but rural provinces carry the heaviest burden, Mashonaland Central tops at 58.1%.

Zimbabwe’s TVET system remains under-resourced, with women, rural youth, and persons with disabilities under-represented in training and employment outcomes.

That’s why our Care to Share programme, funded by the Oak Foundation, matters. Yesterday, 121 young people graduated, 70 of them were women, proof that targeted investment in rural youth can close the skills gap.



Ministry of Youth Empowerment, Development and Vocational Training

Our welding students didn't just graduate today.

They built a braai stand from scratch, with their own hands and presented it to the Deputy Minister of Ministry of Youth Empowerment, Development and Vocational Training, Hon. Kuda Mupamhanga as a gift.

And our Cutting & Designing graduates? They stitched their mark too presenting the Hon. Deputy Minister with a long-sleeved and short-sleeved national print shirt, cut and crafted by their own hands.

No one handed any of this to them. Just raw metal, a welding torch, fabric, and a needle and skills that didn't exist in them 12 months ago.

That braai stand and those shirts are a statement. They say: we were trained, we created, we can provide. They say: skills make the difference. They say: youth got the power.

To the Hon. Deputy Minister, from our graduates to you. Made in Zimbabwe. Made by Zimbabwe's youth.



Oak Foundation Young Africa Raj A. Joseph

Today, 121 young people, 70 women and 51 men will walk across the stage as Motor Vehicle Mechanics, Welders, Miners, Hairdressers, Cutters and Designers.

They came from communities where opportunity is scarce. They leave with skills no one can take from them. This is what the Care to Share programme, made possible by the Oak Foundation, looks like in real life, not in a report but in people.

Like, share, comment and celebrate with us!

"My name is Ever Zhakata. I am 32 years old, and I trained as a hairdresser. Before training, I survived by selling tomatoes and vegetables. On a good day, I made about 20 US dollars. It was never enough to meet the needs at home.

I have a child to take care of and a mother who relies on me. After training, I had to share a salon space here in the complex because I could not afford my own place. When Young Africa handed me a start-up kit, my situation changed. My income grew steadily, and I was able to build my own salon. Today I no longer pay rent to anyone. I earn around 400 US dollars per month after removing all the expenses, compared to the 50 to 150 I used to earn before.

I am also a Crafts Master with six students. They support me in my daily work, and together we are building something stable. For the first time in my life, I feel secure. I feel independent. I feel hopeful about what tomorrow will bring."



SERVE Ministry of Youth Empowerment, Development and Vocational Training