Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) on Thursday announced the extension of their multi-million rand partnership by a further three years and an additional $3.6-million.
Beyond Advocacy Fund (BAF), is an imaginative partnership between BLSA and USAID to tackle some of the most pressing socioeconomic challenges in South Africa, including youth unemployment, early childhood development, and the promotion of small business development.
Bonang Mohale, chief executive of BLSA, said that the renewal and extension of the BAF partnership was based on the recognition of the success that the project has seen in the last three years.
"It is also a validation that sometimes impact comes not only from money, but also from harnessing the skills and capabilities of various partners, especially government and business. It’s a good model of collaboration between government, business and civil society in tackling our formidable developmental challenges," Mohale said.
In one of the flagship projects, listed ICT firm EOH provides training and paid internships to some 350 unemployed youth to be call-centre operators and English tutors to overseas non-English speaking learners in China.
BAF has also partnered with Finfind, an online SME access to finance solution which brings together small business owners and operators that are looking for funding and lenders with a specific focus on enterprises that are ready to receive funding.