Building Blocks Entrepreneurship Academy

South Africa is experiencing an unemployment crisis that is disproportionately impacting young people, with rates reaching as high as 66.5% for people aged between 15-24 years. This issue will have long-term consequences on the economic future of the country. Nozipho has been committed to tackling this challenge since 2015, when she began to help young people prepare their CVs to access the job market. However, she soon realised that intervention was not enough, and in 2018 she went to the roots of the issue by providing better quality education to give young people a platform from which to launch their careers.
The Academy, co-founded by Nozipho, aims to build the skill-set of its students so that they can better succeed in the current economic climate of South Africa. The organisation ran its first 5 day bootcamp in 2019, involving special guest speakers, interactive content, and ending with a market-day where students could present their designed enterprises to a selection of businesses. Since the pandemic, the organisation moved bootcamps online, shortening the days slightly from 8 hours to 4.5 but maintaining the same quality of content. The Academy also hosts an interactive e-learning platform after noticing interest from parents in a more adult-focused programme. This covers similar ideas, with modules exploring emotional intelligence, conflict management skills, negotiation skills and problem-solving abilities. The project's core team also makes itself readily available for one-on-one sessions for young people interested in entrepreneurship and career development. Between the various different programmes, more than 4,000 people have received this comprehensive education to prepare them for the world of work and an entrepreneurial career.
The Academy uses business funding to sponsor students from low-income backgrounds, ensuring that there is a diverse demographic of students in the alumni network and guaranteeing the education is accessible. The team continues to support the most engaged students through this alumni network. In addition to its core programmes, Building Blocks has also visited schools in Hong Kong and Rwanda to explore similar programmes and provide training on diversity issues.
“The One Young World network has assisted Building Blocks in its endeavour to reach communities across the world through bridging connections between Building Blocks and its global partners. On multiple occasions, Building Blocks has collaborated with ambassadors of One Young World to deliver our workshops and training.”