With mental health issues rapidly rising in the county, especially among young people, Pretty Kekana has started a non-profit organisation (NGO) that she hopes will help tackle the scourge.
Motsha Change, which is based in Ratanda on the south of Heidelberg in Gauteng, was established in 2017 after the 39-year-old founder, Kekana, spotted a gap in the community and committed to bring about change.
“Most of the young people in our community are talented and yet there are no opportunities and platforms to help them thrive, there has been a lack of motivation. That presented us with an opportunity to empower [them] by bringing inspiration, education and more information to the community,” said Kekana.
The platform is utilised to assist children who do not get support from their families.
“We want to be the voice in the community, recognise every child, make them see themselves as assets, help them fight against social ills and issues of mental health that ultimately have an impact on the quality of their lives.”
The NGO visits local schools and makes use of social media to promote its programmes.
“We track the progress of the teenagers we work with on a monthly basis. Our main aim is to help them identify, understand, and overcome mental health as the basis for our programmes.”
Young people who are registered with Motsha Change have access to free counselling sessions, which include self-development programmes, to help them in their daily lives.
“To make these sessions meaningful, we work with registered counsellors, social workers, care workers, nurses, and psychologists,” she shared, saying the NGO had helped boost the youth’s confidence, self-esteem and build meaningful relationships.
The NGO receives donations from corporates, but has not received enough to ensure it is able to deliver on all its goals and vision. “We would like to reach out to more corporates to come on board as part of socio-economic development.”
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