On Friday, 12 September, CATCH Trust hosted another inspiring Women’s Empowerment Workshop, bringing together young women to learn, share, and grow across two powerful pathways: Health & Wellness and Professional & Digital Skills.
The afternoon opened on a joyful note with singing and dancing, with even the coaches joining in the fun. This set the tone for a day filled with energy, openness, and community.
Our Health & Wellness Pathway focused on the important and often sensitive topic of safe terminations of unwanted pregnancies. Facilitated by internal coaches Zizipho Zothe and Babalwa Zothe, the session created a safe and inclusive space where participants felt comfortable expressing their thoughts and questions.
Reflecting on the session, Zizipho and Babalwa shared:
“Kids were engaging and freely expressed themselves in their home language. They innocently asked questions and one could see that they really believed the myths around the termination of unwanted pregnancies. Breaking that stigma and talking about the myths, was informative for them.”
Meanwhile, the Professional & Digital Pathway turned up the creativity with a Canva session facilitated by Leanne Eksteen. Before diving into design, Leanne took time to connect with participants personally, checking in on how they were feeling and how exams were going.
The Canva session included a fun, interactive team exercise that sparked creativity, teamwork, and even a bit of friendly competition. At the end of the activity, one group reflected:
“From the exercise done today, we really enjoyed it. However, we need to learn to work as a team and listen to one another. We are all here to learn and should take the opportunity to do so.”
This spirit of learning, growing, and developing together was evident throughout the workshop, highlighting the true purpose of the Women’s Empowerment series—creating spaces where young women can build confidence, challenge stigma, and discover their voices.
