• Education and training (e.g. leadership development)
  
• Empowerment and income generation (e.g. craftwork, agriculture)
  
• Community projects (e.g. orphanages, food kitchens)

1. African Leadership Development Institute (ALDI)  Leadership Training, Empowerment, Income generation
2. Bethesda Arts Centre              
   Centre for Arts education and health
3. Sakhumzi
   Orphanage
4. WARMTH
   Feeding / entrepreneurship scheme
5. The Masikhulisane Trust
   Poverty alleviation, job creation
6. Bonginkosi Preschool
   Preschool for children from extremely deprived families
7. GADRA visually impaired project
   Helping visually impaired people
8. Sinethemba shelter
   shelter for abused women and children
9. Eluxolweni shelter
   Shelter for street children
10. Bonginkosi blanket project
    Income generation
11. The Alexandria Haven
    Orphanage
12. Preschool places, Grahamstown
    
    

Archive of previously funded projects dating back to 2007

1. Gauteng Peace and Development Foundation
   Empowerment, training and income generation
2. Ingelozi Eyetu
   Craftwork project

2. Bethesda Arts Centre
   
   Perspective - Unemployment in South Africa
   
   South Africa's rate of unemployment is often cited as on of the highest in the world. Its income distribution is amongst the most unequal in the world. The wealthiest South Africans continue to be white urban dwellers and the poorest tend to be black, rural dwellers. At the bottom of the pile are found the San/Bushmen people.
   
   Before the Bethesda Arts Centre came into being, the local people lived in poverty and despair.But today Bethesda brings employment and dignity to the San/Bushmen.
3. In this area of the Eastern Cape, some of the poorest in South Africa struggle against alcoholism, abuse, and lack of self-esteem.
   
   

   Because of the Bethesda Arts Centre’s growing opportunities through teaching, training, education, workshops, empowerment and income-generating programmes, a dramatic change is taking place. Disadvantaged people are growing in talent, ability and self esteem. Participants sell their work in the gallery attached to the Centre, bringing much needed income into one of the poorest areas of the country. Grants from Thembisa have enabled the Centre to employ staff in the gallery – an essential outlet for the artwork. Liena Johnson, who was the first warden of the gallery, puts it like this:
   
   “We were just sitting in the sun with nothing to do. Now we can say we have a history. When we look at the mountains, we notice that they are beautiful, and say, we are artists! The Arts Centre has changed our lives.”
   
   
   
   
   Today stunning work is being produced. But they still need Thembisa’s support to keep the gallery open!
   
   For more information and to purchase artworks go to www.bethesdafoundation.org