There are nearly 500 street sites where 30,000-50,000 South
African men gather to try to attain short term work. Men on the Side of the
Road (MSR) works with these men to organize themselves into national federation
and social movement that can get representation to speak to the South African
Government. Furthermore, the organization provides training for these men so
they are more likely to get hired by potential employers and potentially start
their own businesses. MSR also works with businesses to attain employment for
the men and also has begun lobbying the government to commit to hiring the men
for at least 3% of government contracts.
MSR has also started a program in the communities the men
live in to collect used tools that the men can fix and sell back to the
community. This creates employment for the men and also strengthens ties
between the organization and the communities they are working in. Some of the
tools also are given to men to start their own businesses in industries including
gardening and carpentry. The program has collected over 50,000 tools with
30,000 of the tools being lent out to men from Johannesburg
and Cape Town.
For more information on this organization please visit their
website.
