High-school learners · Weekly sessions
STEM & Future Readiness
Coding, robotics and digital skills — plus the problem-solving habits that sit underneath them.
- Coding
- Robotics
- Digital literacy
- Problem solving
- Project work
Langa, Cape Town · Since 2017
Young people in Langa, building what comes next.
iThuba Innovation Hub runs daily programmes for learners in Langa — STEM and digital skills, wellbeing and leadership, and a supported pathway into tertiary study and work.
0+
Learners a year
Daily
Programming, not once-off
0
Serving Langa since
How we work
Engage. Explore. Create.
One path, three stages. Every learner starts by belonging, grows by exploring, and leaves ready to build something of their own.
- 01
Where it starts
Engage
- Community, belonging, wellbeing
- Leadership, peer support
- Safe space to practise responsibility
- 02
Where it grows
Explore
- STEM, coding, robotics
- Digital skills, problem-solving
- Hands-on experimentation
- 03
Where it leads
Create
- Innovation, building solutions
- Employment, careers
- Leadership roles, real responsibility
What we run
Four programmes, one learner journey
A learner can walk in at Grade 8 and stay with us through matric and beyond — each programme picks up where the last one leaves off.
All learners · Weekly
Wellbeing & Leadership
Skills don't stick when life is unstable. This programme runs alongside everything else — life skills, group support, and leadership roles that let learners practise responsibility somewhere safe before they need it somewhere hard.
- Life skills
- Peer support
- Leadership roles
- Safe space
Grade 8 through matric and beyond · Long-term (multi-year)
Tertiary & Career Pathway
The long game. We start before learners think they need to, because subject choice in Grade 9 quietly decides what's possible in Grade 12.
- Subject choice
- Bursaries
- Applications
Young adults from Langa · Full-time
Current Future Leaders (CFL)
Young adults from Langa take on real roles across both organisations — design, communications, grant writing, facilitation, operations — earning while building the experience that a first job usually demands and never offers.
- Paid roles
- Real responsibility
- Mentorship
- Portfolio building
Rooted in Langa
Started in the community, run by the community
iThuba grew out of the Happy Feet Youth Project and launched its STEM programme in 2017. We're not a project that visits Langa — we're based here, our team is from here, and our learners walk to us.
- 2017
- STEM launched
- Langa
- Home base
- Local
- Team & learners
Our ecosystem
Three organisations. One community.
iThuba doesn't work alone. Three connected vehicles reach the same young people at different ages and in different ways.
1Ages 5–13Foundation
Happy Feet Youth Project
Arts, culture and sport that reach children early and keep them engaged.
2Ages 13–18Skills
iThuba Innovation Hub
STEM, digital skills and future readiness for high-school learners.
3Ages 18+Sustainability
Siviwe Tours
Township tourism that tells Langa's story on its own terms — and helps sustain the work.
Why it matters: a child can meet us at seven through Happy Feet and still be with us at twenty as a Current Future Leader.
See partnersThe Hub Dispatch
News from the Hub
Issue 09 · Spring 2026 · Langa
Culture
Xhosa heritage takes the stage
A facilitator in traditional Xhosa dress addressed learners and guests at a Hub gathering, making space for a conversation about heritage and belonging.
In brief
Visitors · 21 Nov 2026
Sharing the cooking at the braai
Learners and visiting students helped with the cooking at a Hub braai. Preparing food together gave everyone an easy way to chat and get to know one another.
Langa walkabout · 16 Nov 2026
Getting to know Langa on foot
A facilitator accompanied visiting exchange students on a walk through Langa. Along the way, there was time for questions about daily life beyond the Hub.
Hub life · 11 Nov 2026
A friendly challenge across the classroom table
Two learners tried an arm wrestle during a classroom break. The friendly challenge made room for a bit of play alongside the afternoon’s learning.
Stay tuned
Get Hub updates straight to your phone on WhatsApp — sessions, events and good news from Langa.
Follow along →More from the Hub
WellbeingA ball and a breather between sessions
A learner brought a soccer ball into the courtyard for a break between sessions. Time outside offered a chance to move and catch up with friends.
Read the story →
CommunityA courtyard cheer to start November
Learners gathered outside the brightly painted container classroom for a shared cheer before heading into the afternoon’s Hub activities.
Read the story →VisitorsSharing the cooking at the braai
Learners and visiting students cooked together at a Hub braai. Sharing the work around the fire gave everyone time to chat while preparing the meal.
Read the story →
PartnersA walk past a partner school
A group passed a partner school entrance during a walk through Langa. The stop offered a chance to talk about how school life connects with afternoons at the Hub.
Read the story →Langa walkaboutGetting to know Langa on foot
A facilitator walked through Langa with visiting exchange students, making time for questions along the way. The walk helped visitors get to know the neighbourhood around the Hub.
Read the story →Hub lifeA friendly challenge at the classroom table
Two learners tried an arm-wrestling challenge during a classroom break. The friendly contest made room for a laugh before everyone returned to the afternoon's activities.
Read the story →Back a learner in Langa
Your support pays for materials, transport, meals and the everyday running of the programme.