Mentorship does not end when a training course does. Here is how pairing young people with committed mentors changed what happened after the certificate.
Every training programme in Dete faces the same question at the end of the final session: what happens next? A certificate is a milestone, but it does not open a market, price a product or handle the first difficult customer.
That question is why mentorship sits at the centre of our youth skills work rather than at the edge of it. Each cohort is paired with mentors who commit to staying in contact well beyond the closing ceremony.
What mentorship actually looks like
- Regular check-ins in person or by phone, at times that fit around work and family.
- Practical problem-solving: pricing, suppliers, record keeping, difficult conversations.
- Introductions to markets, customers and other young people doing similar work.
- Honest feedback when something is not working, early enough to change course.
“Tikobane's mentorship programme gave me confidence to speak up and to plan for my own future.”
What we are learning
The clearest pattern is that consistency matters more than intensity. A mentor who is reachable once a month for a year does more than an intensive week that then goes quiet.
We are also learning to match more carefully. Shared trade or sector matters, but so does temperament — and the pairings that last are the ones where the young person feels able to admit a mistake.
Names, photographs and quotations are published only with the informed consent of the people involved.
