We have been in operation since 2005 and in this time have grown to develop life-giving opportunities across an impact map of programmes: Agriculture, Education, Healthcare, Skills Development and Enterprise Development. Our initiatives champion career-specific infiltration, entrepreneurial spirit, mentorship, funding and flagship community impact.
We use strategies to fulfil the aim of uplifting unemployed youth. We provide the most effective skills, tools and instruments of systemic and industry-specific standard to nurture and stimulate their deserving and developing future in South Africa.
EDUCATION
Building Futures Through Learning
Rhiza Holdings operates across vulnerable townships with a strong focus on education, one of its four core impact pillars. Our education work is delivered largely through Rhiza Babuyile, the non‑profit arm of the group.
We support education through holistic developmental models that integrate education with healthcare and green economy initiatives. Our aim programmes to remove systemic barriers that limit learning and job access in township communities.
Rhiza Babuyile’s response to the lack of quality early childhood education has been to implement valuable training of practitioners and upgrading township-based schools.
Practitioner Training
We equip ECD practitioners with the knowledge and skills needed to deliver quality early learning. Our training pathways include:
- ECD Accelerator (Unaccredited): An introductory, practical programme designed to strengthen foundational ECD skills.
- NQF Level 4 (Accredited): A comprehensive qualification for ECD practitioners responsible for daily teaching and care.
- NQF Level 5 (Accredited): A leadership‑focused qualification aimed at centre managers, supervisors, and emerging ECD leaders. These programmes build professional confidence and promote consistent, high‑quality early childhood practice.
Registration & Compliance Support (Bana Pele Partnership)
Rhiza is an official DBE Associated Partner in the Bana Pele ECD Registration Drive. We support ECD centres on their registration and compliance journeys through:
- guided navigation of departmental processes
- safety and operational assessments
- resource or financial support where possible. Our goal is to help ECD centres meet the standards required for formal registration and compliance, enabling them to unlock the DBE subsidy, which strengthens their long‑term sustainability.
ECD Business Training
We support ECD centre owners to run their centres with a strong business mindset. Training covers:
- financial management in partnership with Experian
- HR and staffing
- marketing and parent engagement
- fundraising and resource mobilisation. Delivered in partnership with the Change the Game Academy (CtGA), this programme helps ECD owners build resilient, well‑managed centres.
Side Hustle Programme (Income Diversification)
This programme helps ECD centres strengthen their financial stability through income diversification. Through coaching and mentorship, ECD owners:
- assess existing resources
- identify and design viable side‑hustle opportunities
- develop and grow additional revenue streams
The ECD centre remains the primary focus, with side businesses supporting its sustainability. Participants also receive fundraising training and may qualify for match‑funding opportunities with the CtGA based on income generated.
Youth Development & Specialised Services in ECD
We strengthen the ECD ecosystem by training youth for specialised support roles while expanding access to services for children. Youth are trained in one of three pathways:
- Play Facilitation: Addressing childhood trauma through intentional play‑based psychosocial support.
- Early Tech Facilitation: Introducing learners to coding foundations and digital literacy through unplugged, age‑appropriate activities such as pattern recognition and problem‑solving.
- Impact‑Based Content Creation: Developing storytelling and literacy‑focused content, reinforcing ECD concepts in home languages for improved understanding and absorption. This creates meaningful youth employment while enriching learning opportunities for ECD children.
Education Strategy
Rhiza’s education strategy fits into its mission to fight poverty, unemployment, and inequality by providing:
Access to quality
early education
Skills training
for youth
Career
pathways
Support structures for educators and educational institutions
HEALTHCARE
A Right, Not a Privilege
Healthcare is one of Rhiza Holdings’ four core focus areas, forming a critical part of its mission to reduce inequality and provide essential services to underserved township communities.
Rhiza integrates healthcare with education and green economy initiatives, ensuring that communities gain access to essential services they previously lacked. Our healthcare programmes are designed to improve access, affordability, and long‑term sustainability.
Our aim with healthcare has been to put the power of wellbeing back into the hands of individuals and provide facilities to extend this philosophy into the community.
We’ve been able to further our health care programmes and extend our holistic model to provide good quality healthcare services through our Community Life Centres and Mobile Clinics. Rhiza Babuyile aims to consistently improve the healthcare delivery system by focusing on access, equity, efficiency, quality and sustainability.
Our Approach
Combining health services with community development
Building local
capacity
Creating employment through health-linked enterprises
AGRICULTURE
Strengthen Agricultural Productivity
In our aim to tackle improved food security and economic participation, we develop under-resourced communities to utilise the land they live on. To us, Agripreneurship is a series of training programmes that use active learning to engage trainees in discovering the profitability of farming.
The cohort of learners at Thuthuwa- Diepsloot, enrolle in the agripreneurship programme, follow a structured 12‑month experiential learning journey designed to build both competence and confidence in agriculture. Learners spend their first three months on the farm, where they gain foundational and practical knowledge in crop production, soil health, farm management, irrigation, and basic agribusiness principles. This phase equips them with hands‑on skills in a supportive learning environment, allowing them to apply theory immediately in real farm settings.
Following this introductory period, learners transition into a nine‑month placement on a commercial farm, where they are immersed in the realities of large‑scale production, operational systems, and the demands of a professional agricultural environment.
At Amathuba in Orange Farm, the 12 months by learners is spent on a full NQF Level 4 programme which is a nationally recognised vocational programme designed to prepare learners for skilled employment or agripreneurship within the agricultural sector. It builds on earlier foundational levels and provides more advanced technical competencies, practical workplace experience, and business‑oriented agricultural training.
Throughout the programme, the focus remains firmly on practical knowledge, employability, and the establishment of profitable farming practices. These pathways ensure that learners are not only equipped with agricultural skills, but empowered with the confidence, business insight, and real‑world experience needed to build sustainable livelihoods. By nurturing agripreneurs who can cultivate both the land and their own economic futures, we are strengthening communities from the ground up and contributing to a more food‑secure and economically resilient society.
Holistic Development in Green Economy
Training
Land Access
Mentorship and
Market Connections
Food Security
Business Development
LIVELIHOODS
Strengthening The Local Economy
We apply an integrated, multisector approach where Livelihoods is not a stand alone programme, but part of a broader ecosystem that connects skills development, entrepreneurship, and overall community well-being. At the centre of Rhiza’s Livelihoods strategy is our skills development venture, which equips young people with in demand digital and technical capabilities while linking them directly to meaningful employment opportunities. At the same time, we empower both aspiring and established entrepreneurs with the knowledge, tools, and support needed to build businesses that are economically sustainable and scalable.
Skills Development
We view our learners and students as multi-skilled and diverse. These programmes have upskilled numerous learners since inception. Our programmes offer unemployed youth aged 18 to 35 a comprehensive and grounded learning experience in various demand-driven industries: Agriculture, Fashion and Design, Entrepreneurship, Systems Management and lastly, Nursing and Teaching.
Enterprise Development
We offer entrepreneurs several services, such as assistance with incubation, developing a business plan, access to finance, office spaces, coaching from large corporations, masterclasses and access to networks to increase their turnover and profits. We work hard to provide open and safe workspaces for entrepreneurs, such as our Jozi Business Hub.
Core Programmes
Skills Development
and Training
Business Incubation
Support
Access to Markets
and Opportunities
Access to Tools
and Resources
Community-Based
Enterprise Development