Youth for Survival (Pretoria West)

About Youth for Survival

Youth for Survival (YFS) is a registered Not-for-Profit Organisation founded in 2007, based at 181 Vom Hagen Street, Pretoria West (0183), with satellite branches in Moloto North, Mpumalanga (Mabolota), North West (Nongama), KwaZulu-Natal, and the Eastern Cape. The organisation has a national footprint but its core operations and flagship safe house are located in Pretoria West.

YFS's mission is to address the socioeconomic challenges faced by women, children, and youth in underprivileged communities by providing developmental programmes and holistic support to survivors of abuse. Their vision is to empower and heal victims of abuse, while placing unemployed beneficiaries into learnerships, employment, and self-employment pathways. Contact person (donation and volunteering): Bongi Mzondeki.

Nine Core Programmes

Youth for Survival operates nine core programmes:

1. The Tshwane One Stop Safe House for Women and Children — YFS's flagship programme. The safe house provides emergency shelter and protection for women and their children who are fleeing domestic violence, sexual abuse, and other forms of GBV. As a "one stop" facility, it integrates multiple services — shelter, counselling, legal support, and skills development — under one roof, avoiding the need for survivors to travel between multiple organisations.

2. Victim Empowerment — direct psychosocial support, case management, and referrals for survivors of abuse and violent crime.

3. Skills Development Training — vocational and life skills training building practical independence for women, youth, and survivors, reducing the economic dependency that traps many survivors in abusive situations.

4. Anti-Teenage Pregnancy Awareness Campaign — community education targeting young women and girls on sexual reproductive health, rights, and prevention.

5. Reintegration of ex-offenders — support for individuals returning from incarceration, addressing one of the structural drivers of family violence and domestic abuse.

6. Advice Centre — legal and social advice for community members navigating court processes, protection orders, grants, and related issues.

7. Community Development Programmes — addressing household poverty, unemployment, and social isolation, recognising that these structural conditions fuel GBV.

8. Nutritional support — daily meals for unhoused and vulnerable community members.

9. Youth Empowerment — developmental programming for young people, building leadership, skills, and resilience.

Operating Hours

Weekdays: 08:00 – 16:00