Page 116 - SCAT Rural Voice II - 35 Stories for 35 Years

YOUTH
strydenburG
FUTUrE LEADErS OrgANISATION (SFLO)
Strydenburg is a typical arid, semi-desert Karoo town in the Northern Cape located halfway between Cape Town and Johannesburg. It is 181.3km south west of Kimberley, 55km south-west of Hopetown and 75km north-west of Britstown in the eastern part of the Northern Cape.1 The name is Afrikaans for ‘town of argument’ which refers to a disagreement amongst the town’s founders about which farm the town should have been situated on.2
Strydenberg and Hopetown are managed by the Thembelihle Local Municipality situated in the heart of the Karoo in the Pixley Ka Seme District of the Northern Cape.3 The mostly agricultural landscape of the district is rich in natural resources. Today the main economic activities of the Pixley Ka Seme district are community services (26.6%), agriculture (16.6%), transport (15.1%) and trade (12.9%). According to Census 2011,4 there are 2987 people living in Strydenberg, 83.90% who identify as coloured, 10.21% who identify as black African and 5.19% who identify as white. The predominant language spoken is Afrikaans (93.56%). Strydenberg is a poor rural town, wracked by unemployment which particularly affects the youth.
Strydenburg Future Leaders Organization (SFLO) is a youth focused community based organisation based in Strydenburg. The SFLO has played a key role in educating the local community about human rights. The organisation helped to provide school leaving youth with meaningful job opportunities in local business and government departments They also facilitate a Community Workers Programme which benefits around 150 local youth.
1. Strydenburg Travel Information. (2019). Retrieved October 13, 2019, from www.karoo-information.co.za website: https:// www.karoo-information.co.za/routes/town/508/strydenburg
2. Raper, P. (1987). Dictionary of Southern African Place Names (Vol. 46). https://doi.org/10.1080/10228195.2015.1113434
3. Thembelihle Local Municipality - Overview. (2019). Retrieved October 13, 2019, from Municipalities of South Africa website:
https://municipalities.co.za/overview/1178/thembelihle-local-municipality
4. Frith, A. (2019). Census 2011: Main Place: Strydenburg. Retrieved October 13, 2019, from census2011.adrianfrith.com
website: https://census2011.adrianfrith.com/place/374004
FAST faCts
NaMe: Strydenburg Future Leaders Organisation (SFLO)
LeD By: Ronald Matjan
MaiN CHaLLeNGes faCeD By tHe CoMMUNity: unemployment, drug abuse, low education levels, teenage pregnancy
MaiN aCtiVities: youth development; youth bank
aDDress: 269 Kliniek Street, Strydenburg
CoNtaCt: Phone: 053 683 0001, Cell: 053 683 0001
Email: ronald.matjan@gmail.com
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RuRal Voice ii: 35 stories for 35 years