WE HARNESS THE POWER OF COLLABORATION AND ACTIVE CITIZENRY TO CO-CREATE THRIVING COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL ECONOMIES.
Ranyaka Community Transformation is an urban planning non-profit company and development agency. Since 2013, we’ve used a collaborative framework to guide this journey. This framework is called THRIVE.
THRIVE was born from the conviction that we need a different approach: one that puts people, place, and collaborative partnerships at the centre of transformation.
We are currently (2025) working in 38 communities in 15 towns in 8 provinces across South Africa – implementing, amongst other programmes, the Nedbank Proud of my Town initiative.
WE WORK WITH
PLACES
Our approach is place-based and systemic. People-centered spatial planning and multi-sectoral integration are key to community well-being. Our objective is to create healthy eco-systems that lay a foundation for optimal development.
A TRANSFORMED PLACE HAS THE POWER TO TRANSFORM LIVES.
WE WORK WITH
PEOPLE
We work with local stakeholders, strengthening change agents, facilitating cross-sectoral collaboration and integrating citizen-led initiatives into the over-arching strategy for the area. Our objective is collective, as opposed to isolated impact.
THROUGH COLLABORATION, WE TACKLE WHAT IS WRONG AND UNLOCK WHAT IS STRONG.
WE WORK WITH
PIONEERING INVESTORS
We develop smarter ways of investing in societal transformation. Our objective is sustainability, real impact and maximum return on investment. Nedbank’s Proud of my Town initiative is a prime example of smart investment in action.
SMART INVESTMENT LOOKS BEYOND ISOLATED INTERVENTIONS.
The fight against COVID-19 in Magaliesburg
As part of the fight against Covid-19 in the area, the West Rand District Municipality launched its public spaces sanitizing programme in Magaliesburg last Wednesday. Work continued this morning after rain halted the process over the weekend. Ranyaka's local...
Food for hungry families
The clock was ticking. There were less than 12 hours to go before South Africa went into full lockdown. A group of volunteers from multiple churches and NGOs in Stellenbosch (and across South Africa, we can safely assume!) were braving the endless queues in grocery...
Our hands can harm. But our hands can also heal.
The message is clear. Wash your hands, do not touch your face, do not shake hands. It is easy and natural, in times like these, to feel helpless and to wonder about what one could and should be doing to make a difference. We would like to urge NGOs, NPOs, faith-based...
Building Business in Magaliesburg
Our very first product showcase for community entrepreneurs in Magaliesburg had our team scurrying for (plenty of) extra chairs when more than double the number of RSVPs registered to participate on the morning of the event! A whopping total of 54 entrepreneurs from...
Empowering women
In 2019, Jamestown-based NGO, Usiko, launched a programme aimed at empowering a group of 20 dynamic women from the community to take them to reach new heights in their lives – and equip them to become local change agents. The project is funded by the Distell...
Hope behind the green door
Last week, we had the privilege to peek behind the Green Door in Jamestown when we handed over twenty care packs donated to the project by Santam and Ranyaka in collaboration with an anonymous donor. What we discovered behind the green door was an unexpected treasure...
Hello, Kanyamazane!
This past weekend marked a special milestone in the Ranyaka journey - and the unfolding story of Nedbank's Proud of my Town programme. Thank you to the community of Kanyamazane, Nelspruit in Mpumalanga for welcoming the Ranyaka team into your midst!A group of 80...
My story counts
The sound of laughter can be heard as one enters the Boomhuis Art Gallery at the Woodmill in Stellenbosch. Twenty high school learners from different communities are gathered for a week-long holiday programme with a difference. The Chalkboard Project brings hope and...
Thinking out loud
Telling the story of why non-profits do what they do can be tricky business. After a while, the explanations seem to lose their impact in between all the jargon. There are only so many words and so many ways in which to string them together. So, sometimes one just has...
Place matters
The places where we live, learn, work and play every day matter. We believe that one cannot tackle deeply-rooted issues such as unsafe neighbourhoods, inequality, intergenerational poverty and rampant crime without starting with the backdrops against which these...
One child, one teacher, one book, one pen can change the world
“One child, one teacher, one book, one pen can change the world.” - Malala Yousafzai Every day, this classroom is the backdrop against which young lives are shaped. Pictured here is one of the Early Childhood Development centres that form part of our programme in...
Do you see me?
Numbers can numb us. We hear big numbers about big problems. Hundreds of thousands victims of abuse, addiction and violence. Hundreds of thousands unemployed, unskilled and desperate. We hear the numbers, but the faces behind those numbers and the stories of those...
ABOUT US
In 1996, two young town planners from very different backgrounds reported for duty at a local municipality in Gauteng. Only two years had passed since the dawn of democracy in South Africa.
WHAT WE DO
Ranyaka works hand-in-hand with communities, local stakeholders, all levels of government and investors to develop and implement transformation strategies for towns and communities.
WHERE WE WORK
By mid-2020, Ranyaka will be working in 13 towns and neighbourhoods in 9 towns across seven provinces throughout South Africa. We focus mainly, but not exclusively, on under-resourced communities.