#BeFree Centre of Excellence to provide safe space for youths
• By Martha Nangombe
FIRST Lady of Namibia (FLON), Monica Geingos says the #BeFree Centre of Excellence currently under construction at the Multi-Purpose Youth Resource Centre in Katutura will have a clinic that will cater to the healthcare needs of the youth, including young mothers.
She said this during the foundation’s fundraising dinner to raise money for the Centre of Excellence.
Speaking at the gala dinner, FLON said, “We believe that all it takes is One. Through One Vision, One Hope and One Dream, we can make a lasting difference in the lives of our beneficiaries. This is us. This is One. Our collective dream is not only for the centre but for the country. This is why long-term relationships are essential. We need the private sector funding to sustain the foundation through forming partnerships that serve the youth.
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“The centre for Project #BeFree will be a physical manifestation of the #BeFree engagements’ key learnings, to provide a safe space for the youth. Young people and their parents will have access to professional services including psychological support, legal and criminal justice system guidance, the full spectrum of sexual reproductive health services, skills development, adolescent-friendly entertainment, and other critical services,” she said.
The Capricorn Foundation pledged N$500 000 towards the Project #BeFree Centre of Excellence at the One Economy Fundraiser Gala Dinner. The event was hosted under the theme ‘We are One.’
The BeFree idea was started after engaging over 150 000 young people from all fourteen regions of the country. The project also encompasses youths from the South African Development Community (SADC), Switzerland, the United States of America (USA) and the Netherlands, with the aim of holding frank, non- judgmental dialogue and thematic conversations on complex social issues through #BeFree engagements.
This comes after it was identified that a pressing need exists for an integrated protection system with adequate capacity and resources to prevent harm and respond to the needs of young people in a coordinated manner.
Key pillars that the project stand on are Governance, Sustainability, Community Engagement and Partnership.
The Capricorn Group indicated that it was proud of its contributions to society and through supporting the Project #BeFree Centre of Excellence, the Group aligns their Corporate Social Responsibilities (CSR) vision of being an inspiring Connector of Positive Change by creating economic value in a responsible way that creates sustainable opportunities for advancing and improving the economic and social conditions in the communities where it operates.
The Capricorn Foundation is the Group’s main vehicle for its CSR activities and is funded by Bank Windhoek, Capricorn Asset Management and Entrepo.
“The Capricorn Foundation commits to partner with like-minded organisations like the One Economy Foundation to address issues faced within our communities and to find sustainable solutions. The Capricorn Foundation’s pledge is earmarked towards the Project #BeFree Centre of Excellence educational area. This support crosscut two of our Foundation’s focus areas namely education and health. We believe this is a start of a long-term partnership between the Capricorn Foundation and the One Economy Foundation,” said Capricorn Foundation Executive Officer, Marlize Horn,
The Capricorn Group recently released its annual Social Value Report, indicating that the Group has invested N$15.4 million in CSR initiatives for the period ending 30 June 2022 through the Capricorn Foundation and the CSR activities of its subsidiaries.