YearBeyond (YeBo) Youth Service Programme

Written by Thabo MokoenaSenior Education Editor

Reviewed & verified by Naledi KhumaloSenior Admissions and Bursaries EditorVerified

YearBeyond, known as YeBo, is a one-year youth service programme for unemployed young people aged 18 to 25. Participants, called YeBoneers, work in schools, early childhood programmes, libraries and community projects. In return they receive training, an allowance and help finding their next step into study or work. The programme started in the Western Cape, where the provincial Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport (DCAS) still recruits for it. It now runs as a partnership of government, the National Youth Development Agency, donors and NGOs, and the YeBo Institute, a non-profit company set up in 2023, administers it. Recruitment for 2026 ran from 7 January to 13 February 2026 and is closed.

An allowance for days of service, not a salary

YearBeyond is clear that the programme is not a job. It pays no salary. YeBoneers receive an allowance for the days of service they work, meant to cover travel, lunch and a working cellphone with data. The programme does not publish the amount. It describes the year as structured service with three parts: meaningful work experience, personal and professional development through the YeBo Academy, and pathway support afterwards.

The work experience is built around 12 competencies, nine core and three linked to the YeBoneer’s placement, and performance is measured against these. By the end of the year a YeBoneer should have a job description of what they did, with whom and for what result, and a list of the skills they gained. YearBeyond says more than 75% of YeBoneers move into study or employment each year. Its office helps each one pursue three possible next steps, and its annual Career Marketplace connects them with institutions, employers and bursary funders.

Education and social cohesion placements

Every YeBoneer works in one of two streams, and each programme sets its own entry rules and areas:

The education stream also includes Scouting in Schools and the Shukuma/Planet Youth programme. The social cohesion stream also includes Placemakers and Health Champions. Every programme requires applicants to live in or near an area where it runs, and each programme page on the YearBeyond site lists its areas. The longest-running strand, launched in 2015, places young people as teaching assistants and tutors. They run after-school literacy and numeracy for Grade 3 and 4 learners in low- and no-fee schools across the Western Cape.

Age, Matric and where you live

• Age: 18 to 25. YearBeyond’s FAQ says people aged 17 or 26 cannot apply.
• Matric: needed for some programmes but not all, as the table shows.
• Location: YearBeyond’s biggest footprint is in the Western Cape, but it has programmes in other provinces. You may apply from elsewhere, but you are selected only if you move to the programme area.
• Employment: the programme is for unemployed young people.

Applying on SAYouth.mobi

YearBeyond does not take applications on its own website. For 2026 the Western Cape Government told applicants to:

1. Create or update a profile on SAYouth.mobi, completing it fully and accurately.
2. Make sure the address on the profile is correct, since placements depend on where you live.
3. Search for “YearBeyond”, open the opportunity card for your municipality and apply.
4. Select every 2026 YearBeyond programme you are interested in.

YearBeyond’s head office then checks applications against each programme’s minimum requirements. Shortlisted applicants get a verification call and an interview, and those offered a place attend an orientation week and technical training. The 2026 campaign, #SayYeBo, was announced by DCAS in a Western Cape Government media release on 8 January 2026. The YearBeyond FAQ says recruitment usually opens between January and March each year. The YeBo office is at Greenmarket Square in Cape Town: 021 483 9844, admin@yearbeyond.org.

YeBoneers placed in schools who later want to teach can look at the Funza Lushaka bursary. For study funding in the province, see the Western Cape government bursaries. The NYDA, one of YearBeyond’s partners, also runs the Solomon Mahlangu Scholarship Fund.

FAQs