The team behind the spectacular Aga Sechaba Community Project Photo Aga Sechaba Community Project
South Africa – The Aga Sechaba Community Project is proof that it just takes one person who sincerely wants to help to create a positive change in the community. Lehlohonolo Moses Letsoalo, Founder of Aga Sechaba Community Project, wanted to, not only change his life around, but change the lives of his fellow countrymen.
Before 2008 Letsoalo was a different version of the person he is today. It would be fair to say he went from sinner to saint. His time was spent on the streets, exposed to drugs, gangs, and violence. A life far different than the one he lives now.
“I was one of those young boys growing up in the townships, just like millions and millions of young boys that we see today, who was exposed to drugs at a young age, crime, violence, and a whole lot of things that are happening … I was just lost, unhappy and I was a troublemaker. It is only now that I see that what I was doing back then was actually not real life. Before 2008 I was a menace to society.”
The events that caused Letsoalo to change his life around
It isn’t easy for someone who only knows a life of crime to change their life around. Letsoalo knew he needed to make changes to his life before he made changes to anyone else’s life. His change came by force. Before 2008 he was arrested in the UK for smuggling drugs. For Letsoalo, his time in prison was what turned his life around.
“It was the biggest turnaround of my life because that is where I started to know that as a human being you have to work in order to get something. In prison they taught us how to work. My whole life I never worked. If I wanted something I would steal it … The other thing I learned in prison is how to pray. I never prayed before. It was the first time I started knowing what God is. It was the first time I started reading the Bible.”
Being in prison opened Letsoalo’s eyes to the valuable skills he had. The skills that he had been wasting all these years. His skills, which could be used in a beneficial manner, were being used to cause harm to others.
“I also started to understand the type of skills that I have. My job was to transport drugs to the UK from South Africa, and I did that almost nine times. You can imagine the amount of skill that you have to have to pass the customs officers nine times. It means you are different. It means you are intelligent. Going back and negotiating with the drug dealers means you are a good negotiator. So, prison showed me that I’ve got those kinds of skills.”
The final thing that made him change was the love for his family. Seeing the damage he was causing to his family ultimately made him understand a change was needed.
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The starting of Aga Sechaba Community Project
Changing your life is all well and good but trying to change the lives of others is a different case on its own. After making the firm decision to turn things around for himself, Letsoalo decided to start the Aga Sechaba Community Project in 2008.
“It’s a non-profit organisation. We’ve been operating since 2008. We got 14 years in the field. This organisation was started after my release from prison in 2008. That’s where I registered it. Currently we’ve got 26 employees working who are getting salaries. We started this organisation in a car boot and as we speak now, we have a place almost the size of a school. For me that’s an achievement. We’ve got four offices in four provinces. We’ve got one in the Northwest, one in Limpopo and one in the Free State.”
What inspired Letsoalo to start the organisation
Every great organisation has a starting point, but it also has a story of what inspired its founder to start it. Letsoalo explained the inspiration to start Aga Sechaba Community Project came from the kids who looked up to him when he got out of prison. Not wanting them to follow his route of life, the organisation was a way to give them a better life. Show them a better way.
“I stayed at Atteridgeville. It’s a small township. I think not more than 15 people in that township have ever gone to the UK. Coming from the UK I was like a role model to these young boys. They used to follow me around and say this guy is a real gangster, he was arrested in the UK. I knew the problems there and I couldn’t just let these young boys go the same route that I took.”
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The activities the organisation engages in
The organisation is all about helping drug addicts, ex-convicts and others get their life on track. The centre offers lunch every day and they have a job centre which helps the youth in the area to get jobs. They also offer lessons in cyber security and programming. Skills which are vital in the world today.
“We offer daily meals. Everyday 150 beneficiaries and their families come here to have a proper lunch because we’ve realised that people can’t even afford to eat … We’ve got a gender-based violence program where it’s a halfway house for gender-based violence victims. We’ve got social workers and psychologists in the centre employed by the organisation. They deal with those issues. We’ve realised that substance abuse, the skills development programme, gender-based violence programme all falls under one roof.”
Letsoalo has applied for a number of different accreditations with regards to furniture making and so forth. He believes these are vital skills one can use to make an honest living.
“We’re trying to come up with more sustainable livelihood programs so that people can come out of the grant system and earn a salary for themselves just like what I did. I believe that if I could do it, anyone can do it. There’s nothing special about me.”
Taking the organisation to the next level
The organisation has been well received by the community. Many come to them for help with their substance abuse and Letsoalo employs former drug addicts and ex-convicts in the organisation. Their jobs range from cooking food to providing support and guidance to others. Letsoalo believes more can be done. The organisation can do more to help the people. He believes that interviews and exposure will do more for the organisation than just asking for donations.
“With finance it won’t be easy for us to say we need this much. It is highly impossible because situations differ every day. Situations can change every day but that awareness of people knowing what we do is very important. We believe more in human investment. People knowing what we do because if people know what we do then it’s easy for them to channel resources and activities to us. We just need partnerships. That’s what keeps us going. What we need is more partnership and exposure.”
