As youth unemployment climbs to a record high, Cell C’s growing body of youth-focused work, from Take a Child to Work to a new partnership with Canva, points to a brand trying to be useful, not just visible, in young South Africans’ lives
JOHANNESBURG, 20 July 2026: Cell C recognizes the ambition, skill, and innovation present among South Africa’s youth. However, many lack access to opportunities and necessary tools. This is underscored by Statistics South Africa’s latest labour force survey, which reveals youth unemployment has reached 45.8%, the highest on record. While statistics are telling, they do not reflect the lost potential when a generation’s aspirations are left unfulfilled. In this context, Cell C has embarked on initiatives designed to support rather than simply market to young South Africans.
The most prominent initiative is See Youth, Cell C’s youth empowerment platform, which highlights its Take a Child to Work program. This program allows young individuals to gain firsthand experience in real work environments and career pathways, moving beyond mere inspirational messaging. Instead of promoting from a distance, Cell C seeks to engage directly with the settings that influence the futures of young people.
This week, Cell C announced its latest collaboration with the globally recognized design platform Canva. While See Youth opens doors to the workforce, the partnership with Canva provides essential tools for navigating that world: professional design and content creation software that can help individuals create CVs, portfolios, or launch small businesses. As an initial offer, Cell C customers with the 4GB Data Bundle will gain three months of Canva Pro at no additional cost, showcasing a commitment to providing real value rather than just surface-level offerings.
The partnership with Canva is designed to expand beyond this initial offering. Throughout 2026, Cell C and Canva plan to roll out various youth engagement events and community design workshops, as well as providing support to small business entrepreneurs who face similar access challenges. Cell C aims to be a facilitator of creativity and entrepreneurship within the communities it operates, emphasizing the importance of practical presence over mere promotion.
“See Youth taught us something important, that young people do not need another brand telling them what is possible, they need a brand that actually removes a barrier standing in their way. Take a Child to Work opened doors into workplaces. Canva puts a set of professional tools directly into their hands. Both are the same commitment, just expressed differently, and it is a commitment we intend to keep building on,” says Melanie Forbes, Chief Marketing Officer at Cell C.
For a generation facing the toughest labour market South Africa has recorded, gestures are cheap and access is not. Cell C’s bet, through See Youth, Take a Child to Work and now Canva, is that showing up consistently in young people’s everyday lives will count for more than any single campaign moment ever could.
