South African edutech and youth development organisation Ukiyo has introduced its Global Student Support Platform (GSSP), a mobile application designed to connect young people with educational opportunities, funding, career pathways and support services.
Developed as a centralised digital platform, GSSP aims to address the fragmentation of information and the availability of support services online for students and young job-seekers.
According to a statement, the app provides access to bursaries and scholarships, educational opportunities, mentorship programmes, accommodation, tutoring services, wellness support, leadership development initiatives and work-readiness resources.
The launch comes as SA continues to grapple with high levels of youth unemployment.
According to Statistics SA’s Quarterly Labour Force Survey for the first quarter of 2026, unemployment among people aged between 15 and 24 stands at 60.9%, while approximately 3.9 million young people in the same age group are not in employment, education or training.
Nozuko Mzamo, founder of Ukiyo, says: “South Africa does not have a shortage of ambitious young people. It has a shortage of integrated pathways into economic participation and systems that connect young people to what they need to succeed.
“We built GSSP to support the full journey, from finding a place to study and securing education funding, to building a career and accessing mentorship. For us, success is when a young person can move confidently into a sustainable, dignified and empowered future.
“The early results tell us this model is needed, and our focus now is to reach more young people across South Africa.”
While the GSSP platform does not directly recruit candidates for employers, the app uses algorithms to help users search for and find the available opportunities suitable to their needs.
According to Ukiyo, the platform has attracted more than 4 200 users since entering beta testing a few months ago.
The company says users have generated over 1 300 click-throughs to bursary and scholarship opportunities and more than 2 100 click-throughs to job opportunities currently listed on the platform. Users have also accessed course information, student support services, events and international exchange programmes.
Beyond the platform, Ukiyo works with corporate partners, universities, funders and communities to design youth development and employment-readiness programmes.
The organisation says it has partnered with Thrive Accommodation, North-West University, The LINK by Airlink and Emeris on initiatives aimed at improving student support and increase employability outcomes.
Across the programmes administered on behalf of clients, Ukiyo reports that 85% of participants secure employment within three months of graduation.
Dr Namhla Tshetu, executive manager of corporate services at Airlink, adds: “Our partnership with Ukiyo reflects a shared commitment to unlocking opportunities for young people through access to pathways, mentorship and support ecosystems that enable them to realise their full potential. The LINK by Airlink believes every young person deserves access to opportunity, and GSSP is instrumental in extending this impact to youth.”
Balisa Mancayi, senior specialist for fundraising at North-West University, comments: “Over the past two years, the North-West University has built a meaningful and impactful partnership with Ukiyo, through which deserving students have benefited directly from bursary support amounting to R900 000.
“Against the backdrop of constrained higher education funding, the NWU regards Ukiyo's continued support as both critical and instrumental in expanding access to much-needed developmental pathways for young South Africans."
* The app is available for iPhone users via the Apple App Store and for Android users via Google Play.
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