Preparing young minds for adult life
Contributing towards curbing youth unemployment in Namibia
An enrichment gap year for school-leavers and young adults helps them navigate uncertainties and a lack of perspective for the future.
Dalene Jordaan, the founder and director of the Labyrinth gap year programme, sent her daughter on a gap year programme in South Africa and saw how this initiative helped her. She then made her dream to run a similar programme in Namibia a reality.
The 10-month programme is tailored to youth between the ages of 17 and 24. It exposes participants to various careers through information sessions and job-shadowing opportunities in places of work and connects participants to mentors in the world-of-study and the world-of-work to become lifelong go-to persons.
Jordaan began the programme as a social responsibility initiative to help school-leavers and young adults make a smooth transition towards their young adult phase.
With emphasis on career guidance and skills development, the project aims to prepare the young minds for adult life.
The challenges the youth navigate - in a fast-changing electronic world - birthed the programme, which believes that the youth are the leaders of tomorrow. “It is our obligation to continue to gear them towards their future, which is also our future. It is time to be bold and innovative; to do something practical,” Jordaan said.
Driven by passion
A teacher by training and profession, she has 46 years of experience in the field, and her passion lies in youth development and empowerment. She said as a teacher, she experienced first-hand how the young ones become anxious in the senior phase of their school career.
“A very small percentage of them have support from home to be well geared towards their career future. Indecisiveness and depression are typical consequences,” she said.
Face-to-face presentations are given at selected secondary schools to invite learners to join the programme.
The Labyrinth Gap Year programme is in partnership with more than 70 individuals, industry establishments, businesses and community actions. Participants receive certificates of attendance and appreciation from collaborating partners.
The 10-month programme is tailored to youth between the ages of 17 and 24. It exposes participants to various careers through information sessions and job-shadowing opportunities in places of work and connects participants to mentors in the world-of-study and the world-of-work to become lifelong go-to persons.
Jordaan began the programme as a social responsibility initiative to help school-leavers and young adults make a smooth transition towards their young adult phase.
With emphasis on career guidance and skills development, the project aims to prepare the young minds for adult life.
The challenges the youth navigate - in a fast-changing electronic world - birthed the programme, which believes that the youth are the leaders of tomorrow. “It is our obligation to continue to gear them towards their future, which is also our future. It is time to be bold and innovative; to do something practical,” Jordaan said.
Driven by passion
A teacher by training and profession, she has 46 years of experience in the field, and her passion lies in youth development and empowerment. She said as a teacher, she experienced first-hand how the young ones become anxious in the senior phase of their school career.
“A very small percentage of them have support from home to be well geared towards their career future. Indecisiveness and depression are typical consequences,” she said.
Face-to-face presentations are given at selected secondary schools to invite learners to join the programme.
The Labyrinth Gap Year programme is in partnership with more than 70 individuals, industry establishments, businesses and community actions. Participants receive certificates of attendance and appreciation from collaborating partners.
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Namibian Sun
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