Four schools met in Soweto Naledi at Thabo Secondary School, and it was from this meeting that the project received wide spread publicity. The youth ministers of finance were invited to the 2003 budget speech of Minister Trevor Manuel. This has since been a yearly event; other Ministers in government have followed likewise. From its humble beginnings the programme has managed to evolve changing focus on its projects, adding new projects, including unemployed young people as beneficiaries as apposed to only high school learners, aligning our projects to the National Youth Service Standards and providing accredited training according to the SAQA standards.

Whilst many government departments have community development initiatives, the majority of people who fall in the poorer segment of the population are still unable to access the full potential of government programmes. Among the reasons for this gap between service provision and effective utilization by the intended recipients are access to information about services and access to the services themselves.

One of the key objectives of the South African government is to empower the youth with knowledge and skills that will enable them to participate constructively in nation building, and also to gain employable skills. This has created a platform for the collaboration of state organs and non-governmental organizations. Youth are the valued possession of the nation. Without them there can be no future. Their needs are immense and urgent. They are the center of reconstruction and development.
The programme has aligned itself to 2 critical government projects. The government departments are the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development and the Department of Education. There are many challenges that face us as a nation with huge backlogs in housing, employment, education and basic public services. For SAYMP we have decided to focus on 2 areas that we feel we need to focus our energies, they are Creating Safe and Caring Schools and Justice foe all improving service deslivery.

Communities

Violence in our schools:

Our Minister of Education has been concerned about the unacceptably high levels of violence and crime experienced in schools throughout the country. This violence impacts negatively on the learners right to basic education. This project will see learners themselves rising up as leaders within their respective schools addressing this issue.

Justice for all-project:

The three areas within the Justice Project the community development workers will drive are: the Isondlo Maintenance Project, Victims Charter and Violence Against Women and Children. Many South African men do not fulfill their obligations as supportive parents and children often suffer due to lack of basic care and finance. This project will see SAYMP CDW bring these men to book by reporting them and providing services to new mothers who do no understand how the maintenance system work.

The other problem to be addressed is perceptions that perpetrators of crime having more rights than victims. The CDW will change perceptions of this by popularizing the Victims Charter. Many people don’t want to speak out on crime due to fear of being harassed or even attacked. Through popularizing the Victims Charter we will allow victims to understand there rights and be well supported within these rights as a victim.

Poor role models:

South Africa has a huge challenge in its society with regards to healthy role models and leadership. Most problems that face our schools and youth are a result of poor role models and lack of strong leadership amongst young people. This is contributor to some of the violence experienced in our schools. The training will develop and enhance the leadership qualities and values that already exist within the young people and bring it to fruition in order to promote and foster healthy role models within our schools and communities with the aim of combating violence and other related challenges experienced in our schools.

Skills transfer and employment creation.

The existing situation is that the marginalized communities and youth remain impoverished due to the legacy of apartheid. Despite noble efforts by Government to address these discrepancies, these backlogs are not easily eradicated due to a variety reasons.

The backlogs from so many years of apartheid education are immense. Illiteracy rates are high at around 30% of adults over 15 years old (6-8 million adults are not functionally literate), teachers in township schools are poorly trained, and the matric pass rate remains unacceptably low. However, at 68.9% in 2002, compared with 61.7% the year before, the matric pass rate is steadily improving each year.

While 65% of whites over 20 years old and 40% of Indians have a high school or higher qualification, this figure is only 14% among blacks and 17% among the colored population. The "liberation now, education later" stance taken during the years of the anti-apartheid struggle severely damaged the culture of learning and teaching in schools and universities. Instead of places of learning, they became sites of protest.

Youth development (SPO Service provider orientation)

Team leaders (community development workers) will receive training from Umsobomvu Youth Fund on what national youth service entails and what is youth development. This training is valuable to the team leaders, as it will shed more light on what they are doing and the importance of there work.

Drivers license:

All team leaders will be encouraged to get their drivers license. Almost every job requires the basics for employment, and one of those basics is getting a valid South African drivers license. This will increase their chances in getting an exit opportunity.

Computer training:

Another important requirement in getting employment is having an understanding of computer programmes. Computers form the heart of every business and it is therefore extremely important for our team leaders to have this training.

NATIONAL YOUTH SERVICE:

90% of the community development workers time will be spent on service in our schools and communities. At least 70% of that 90% will be spent in the community and 30% in our schools on the following:

Isondlo (Maintenance project)

Community development workers received training from the department of Justice on the Isondlo project. According to their schedule of deliverables 94 community development workers will disseminate information and gather information for the Justice department.

Victims Charter.

Community development workers will conduct door-to-door outreaches in their respective communities bringing awareness to the community and specifically people who have been victims of crime what their rights are and how the victims charter can help them.

Violence against women and children

Once again community development workers will conduct door-to-door outreaches in their respective communities. Focus will be on brining awareness on violent crimes perpetrated on women and children, bringing to book offenders and empowering victims to speak out and through that receive help.

Training and mentoring grade 10& 11 learners on S & CSP

Community development workers will provide training on the safe and caring schools project for grade 840 grade 10 & 11 learners in high schools. This training will take place after school hours and includes 5 topics.  The training will provide information and a project implementation plan and schedule of deliverables on how to create a safe and caring school. Community development workers will support, monitor and evaluate the project in partnership with 840 grade 10 & 11 learners.

 Conducting Service Delivery Watch.

Whilst many government departments have community development initiatives, the majority of people who fall in the poorer segment of the population are still unable to access the full potential of government programmes. Among the reasons for this gap between service provision and effective utilization by the intended recipients are access to information about services and access to the services themselves.

SAYMP community development workers in partnership with DPSA, (Community Development Directorate) will conduct monthly surveys and reports on various local government services to the public. Reports will be surveyed by SAYMP and DPSA and the important pressing issues will be further investigated and looked into by DPSA.

• Skills transfer (National qualifications level 5 certificate in Community Development Practice, Drivers license and Computer skills.
• Justice for all, Bring defaulters who do not pay maintenance for the children to book, Popularize the Victims Charter, empower victims and decrease abuse against women and children.
• Create safe and caring schools. 
• Promoting national youth service.
• Improving service delivery: decrease the gap between service provision and effective utilization by the public that need it the most.
• Exit opportunities

Chief Executive Officer

• Provide overall planning and direction for the operations, budget and staffing
• Design, administer and evaluate all activities of the Programme to ensure that they meet desired objectives.
• Develop a cooperative relationship between all administrators, and support staff, which will allow meaningful development and promotion of programmes.
• Develop and implement-marketing strategies for the programmes to ensure sustainability.
• Provide information and recommendations to funders regarding future needs of the project. Design, administer and evaluate programmes to meet those needs.
• Serve as advocate for the programmes to policy makers, funders, decision‑makers and legislators.

Serve on the board of directors to provide for fiscal accountability, approve the budget, and formulate policies related to contracts from public or private resources.

• Will liase between the CEO and Finance Manager.
• Will be responsible for the planning, coordination and controlling of the programme from inception to completion, meeting the programme's requirements and ensuring completion on time, within cost and to required quality standards.
• The manager will monitor and coordinate the activities of the provincial teams, and will review their deliverables from information received from the programme coordinators and will make the information available at the monthly meetings.
• Provide leadership for the provincial teams, managers, youth workers and service providers.

Secretary / Administrator

• Responsible for the petty cash.
• Provide support for the CEO, Financial Manager and will liase with provincial managers.
• Filing and documenting of reports and database of learners information and the necessary documents of the organization.
• Provide front desk assistants; communicate necessary information to necessary staff.

Financial Manager

• Financial Manager to be responsible for accounting and reporting of money received from donors.
• The position reports to the CEO and donors, and involves significant interaction with the CEO, Provincial Managers and key staff members.
• Manages and maintains general accounting systems to provide records and reports of financial transactions of the project, and monitors actual spending of the budget provincial and national spending on programs and general operations needed to implement the PFTWP program.
• Prepares budgets and financial reports for management, including analysing variances, reporting causes and suggesting methods for improvement.
• Responsible for relocation support, asset management, and physical inventory.
• Ensures adherence to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles and to company financial policies and procedures.

Formulates reports to the auditors for reporting to donors on monies spent.

Programme Officer

• Supervise programme coordinators
• Develop programme material
• Equip and train programme coordinators.
• Report to the programme managers in the province.

Programme Coordinators

• Ensure that the learning programs and activities are implemented according to time frames.
• Liase between YP, YM and Programme Manager. Ensure that the logistics for the training and workshops are organized prior the time of commencement.
• Collect the DPSA reports, support for the Youth Presidents and Youth Ministers, and conduct life skills training.
• Provide other support for the Youth Presidents and the Youth Ministers that would arise.

Marketing & Fundraising Manager

• Find employment and assist in support with exit opportunities for Youth Presidents, working closely with UYF JOBS all the time.
• Will also assist in the marketing, fundraising and promotion of the project.
• Arrange fundraising events and attend conferences and workshops for networking purposes.
• Organize the job shadowing for the Youth Presidents and Youth Ministers.

• SAYMP staff will undergo training that will be offered by SAMDI to improve service delivery and the programmes impact.

At present SAYMP has a staff composition of 2 project provincial managers, 7 project coordinators, 3 administrators, 1 financial manager, CEO, and 1 marketing and fundraising officer. The project will recruit an additional project manager for Mpumalanga, 1 coordinator for the Western Cape and 1 more project coordinator for KZN. Placing our community development workers I exit opportunities plays an important part of SAYMP success. We will therefore in the new 2007 budget allocate funds for the recruitment of a job placement officer who will have the task of placing all the community development workers in exit opportunities.

Sustainability

SAYMP will in the future act as a service provider to the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development and the Department of Education. Our role as a project would then change toward the government departments. In our new position SAYMP would be seen as providing a service to the departments for profit.

In this case the service would be to implement government programmes that are critical to them. SAYMP would deliver the services for the departments at a cost. Through this partnership SAYMP would then have to register a CC as it would be rendering a service to the departments for profit. This is the vision for the organization to the near future.

The South African Youth Ministers Programme consists of passionate committed people, who want to see the youth of South Africa as well as the country as a whole grow from strength to strength. They want to see government reach its desired goals and implementation of the peoples contract.

Last year in 2006, we have successfully trained 38 young people, of which all 38 received certificates and were found competent after a one-year course sponsored by the ETDP seta. We are in the process of finding exit opportunities for the rest of the young people, and will not rest until all of them get placed. It is our desire that all reach their personal goals and become the men and women they were intended to be.