For nearly a decade, Datatec has stood alongside Tomorrow Trust as a committed partner in shaping the futures of young people across South Africa. Their investment has not only enabled access to quality education but has ensured continuity, stability and holistic support for learners from some of the country’s most underserved communities.
As Tomorrow Trust marks its 20th anniversary, the story of Datatec’s partnership stands out as a powerful example of what long-term, strategic corporate social investment can achieve.
A Partnership Rooted in Impact and Possibility
Datatec’s support strengthens the Tomorrow Trust Holiday & Saturday School Programme, a model that combines academic excellence, psychosocial support, digital integration, career exposure, and consistent long-term care from Grade R to Grade 12.
In 2025 alone, Datatec funded 90 learners across Grades 10, 11 and 12, ensuring they had access to:
- Quality academic tutoring
- Digital literacy and online learning
- Psychosocial workshops
- Career development support
- Transport, meals and structured holiday school programmes
This wraparound support has consistently empowered Datatec-sponsored learners to outperform their peers and transition into adulthood with confidence and real opportunity.
A Decade of Results: Datatec’s Legacy of Impact
Tomorrow Trust CEO, Taryn Rae, reflects proudly on this partnership:
“Reflecting on previous Datatec-funded learners who have completed Grade 12, the outcomes speak for themselves. In 2016, 77% of the cohort became active citizens, meaning they are studying, working or employed. The 2018 group achieved an incredible 97%, and the 2024 cohort achieved 87%. In total, Datatec has invested in 90 learners who have completed Grade 12, and 87% of them are actively engaged in society. This is a massive success given the national youth unemployment context of 47.6%. It truly demonstrates the return on investment of this programme and its role in breaking the poverty cycle.”
These outcomes are exceptional, not only statistically but socially.
They show what becomes possible when a young person receives the academic, emotional and structural support needed to stay in school, succeed academically, and step confidently into the world beyond matric.
Datatec Learners Continually Outperform Their Peers
Across the Datatec cohort, the data is consistent:
Grade 10
- Group average: 69% (vs. 49% at their schools)
- 97% scored above 50% overall
- 93% achieved above 50% in English
- 83% met the benchmark of passing all four core subjects above 50%
Grade 11
- Group average: 65% (vs. 55% at school)
- 96% achieved above 50% in English
- 74% achieved above 50% in Maths
- 86% met programme targets in the four gateway subjects
Grade 12
- Group average: 61% (vs. 41% at school)
- 100% achieved above 50% in English
- 81% passed Life Science with above 50%
- 78% met the four-subject benchmark
Beyond academic results, learners benefitted from tutoring, Olympiad preparation, digital integration, psychosocial support, and career exposure, all made possible through Datatec’s investment.
A Long-Term Investment With Generational Impact
Datatec’s partnership demonstrates the true meaning of sustainable CSI:
not once-off interventions, but long-term, consistent investment that changes the trajectory of a young life.
The outcomes are clear:
- Learners stay in school.
- Learners pass with higher marks.
- Learners access tertiary studies.
- Learners transition into employment.
- Learners become active, contributing citizens.
This is the type of return that strengthens communities, builds talent pipelines, and shifts generational cycles of poverty.
Celebrating Datatec at the Tomorrow Trust Gala Dinner
As a valued sponsor of Tomorrow Trust’s 20-Year Impact Gala Dinner, Datatec was honoured for its leadership, foresight and unwavering commitment to educational transformation.
Their partnership is more than financial support, it is a belief in the potential of every child and a recognition that holistic, long-term investment is critical to South Africa’s future.
Looking Ahead: Expanding a Future-Focused Partnership
As Tomorrow Trust enters its next decade, partnerships like Datatec’s will be critical to scaling its playground-to-professional model into more communities across South Africa.
Together, Tomorrow Trust and Datatec are not only supporting learners, they are shaping a more equitable, skilled and hopeful future for generations to come.