Welcome to Bulawayo Branch

General Information

Physical Address:                  Number 6 & 8 Entumbane Housing Office

Postal Address:                     Box FM 736, Famona

Email:                                   byoymca@yahoo.com

Branch Coordinator:                     Ms Sehlile Maphosa (Branch Coordinator)

Contact Details:                             +263 9 400262, +263 772 681531

Focus Areas

  • Gender (Gender Mainstreaming) – Transformative Masculinity
  • Sexual Reproductive Health
  • Life Skills – Youth
  • Advocacy
  • Economic Strengthening

Background and Introduction

Bulawayo YMCA is a branch of the Zimbabwe Young Men’s Christian Associations (Number 32/69) it being an association created according to the Private Voluntary Organization Act (PVO) (Chapter 17:05).   The YMCA is a Christian volunteer membership-driven organization that is youth focused and committed to the development of communities.  Among its major objectives the YMCA strives to provide programs and activities designed to enrich spiritual, mental, cultural and physical development of young people and the marginalized. YMCA can be found in more than 122 countries in the world.

Programs

Sexual Reproductive Health

  • The YMCA runs SRH activities with youth in and out of school. Youth forums and dialogues and done with these young people using methodologies such as film screening, drama and discussions.  The activities are also done with other stakeholders such as Zimbabwe National Family Planning Council and National AIDS Council.
  • The YMCA is also part of the implementers implementing the sister2sister or brother to brother mentorship program being run by National AIDS Council. Mentors were trained and run clubs with 25 mentees each to empower them on SRH issues
  • The YMCA runs yearly quiz competitions with Youth Out of School youths as a way of instilling culture of reading and research amongst young people

Quiz

Y-club session

Economic Strengthening

Young people are empowered with skills such as detergent making and recycling to help them create own income.  Young people are also taught entrepreneurial skills for them to start own businesses.  If more young people start their own business, then unemployment will be drastically reduced.

Camps and Outings

YMCA in Bulawayo runs yearly youth camps that bring together members and non members and team building activities and discussions on topical issues are done.  These help in building strong membership that understand the YMCA

Leadership Trainings & Community Work

Young people are trained to become leaders in different spheres.  The YMCA also works in places like orphanages and old people’s home to give out donations.  This helps young people to be socially responsible.

Youth Advocates Program

Bulawayo YMCA has been part of the branches that have sent and hosted participants of the YAC program.  The program helps young people to learn and share different skills and is being run and funded by the Africa Alliance.  Through this program, participants are expected to  help in recruiting new members, engaging stakeholders, creating and conducting power spaces and creating sustainable programs amongst other roles.

Aims and Objectives

To achieve the Vision and Mission of the YMCA, the aims and objectives of the association shall be:

  1. to improve the capacity of young people and the underprivileged to identify and pursue their chosen vocation
  2. to advocate on topical issues, including, but not limited to, human rights, HIV/AIDS, sexual abuse, conflict management and resolution, and environmental issues towards empowering young people for the African Renaissance.
  3. to develop a Christian outlook among YMCA members through appropriate training and educational programmes to enable them to serve their local community.
  4. To undertake and participate in advocacy programs for the eradication of all conditions that lead to poverty, disease, conflict and environmental degradation
  5. to serve people by the provision of facilities, programmes and activities designed to enrich their spiritual, mental, cultural and physical development.
  6. To facilitate the growth of the YMCA throughout Zimbabwe.
  7. to undertake humanitarian work and facilitate sustainable self-reliance programmes in communities for poverty alleviation.
  8. to raise funds or any other form of support in order to facilitate the achievement of the objectives herein.
  9. to partner with any other organizations whose objectives are similar to those of the YMCA.