ARTS4YOUTH has tapped into the power of creative arts to uplift young people. Through this programme learners doing creative arts get an opportunity to be empowered with skills by community-based organisations that deal with creative arts.
ARTS4YOUTH is a program funded by Assitej SA and coordinates 10 Free State Arts organisations with 150 members in total. Four of these organisations create works for communities while six assist creative art teachers in class for creative arts lesson.
The organization has two phases called After-School and In-Class programmes. For the In-Class programme facilitators go in class and assist the creative arts teachers in achieving good results for the creative arts learners.
The After-School programme facilitators go to schools together with the creative arts teachers and combine either dance or drama learners whom are interested in the programme and provide them with arts skills related to their choice.
One of the organisations that forms part of the programme is Marabane Arts of Styx Mokejane.
Marabane Arts is targetting young people. Their other work include drug abuse awarenesses.
The organisation also take their artistic works of drama and dance to the community and places such as clinics and prisons.
Assitej SA has been offering trainings for its members quarterly and a monthly stipends of R1 600 since June last year.
“With high unemployment especially among youth, the ARTS4YOUTH program has come in handy for these young people. With the little incentives they receive they are able to channel their focus and put more energy to their hopes and dreams.
“The cost of living is expensive so there’s a lot of depression and anxiety so imagine when the artists themselves are depressed it becomes difficult.
“I’m very happy to be given this opportunity since last year as a co-ordinator for this social empowerment fund. Since we started last year we have managed to create training for many beneficiaries, and it also has an element of train-the-trainer so we train them and they go train students,” said Mokejane.
