Cape Town Refugee Centre

Position: social/educational/business
Number of available positions: 1/1/1
Duration of internship: 10-12 weeks

"It must be emphasised that refugees/asylum seekers are not illegal immigrants, but are people who have legal rights to international protection in terms of the United Nations Refugee Convention, to which South Africa is a signatory. They are people who have been forced to flee from war or persecution in their own countries. Many arrive in South Africa with nothing, as they have to flee leaving all their possessions behind."

Internship Position: Centre Assistant
Number of Available Internships: 3
Duration of Internship: 2-6 months

The Cape Town Refugee Centre is an NGO, established in 1994, with the aim of devising ways to address problems facing the growing number of refugees and asylum seekers in the Western Cape.  It strives to improve the quality of life of refugees/asylum seekers by meeting their basic needs on short-term basis and enable them to become self-reliant and self sufficient through capacity building. It seeks to tackle the unique challenges facing refugees in Cape Town in the four areas of education, counseling and therapy, entrepreneurship and job creation.  The centre also seeks to engage refugees/asylum seekers in the improvement of quality of their lives through capacity building, networking, lobbying, advocacy and integration into their host communities. 

Interns will provide council to refugees trying to get established in Cape Town.  Responsibilities may include participating in therapy and counseling sessions, conducting various workshops run by the centre and sitting in on meetings of the different support groups that the organization facilitates and manages.  Opportunities to assist with fundraising and outreach activities would also be helpful due to limited funding.

There are three types of internship openings at CTRC: Social Services, Business Administration and Educational Services.

A major part of the social services position involves refugee screening, where the newly arrived refugees seeking refugee status are interviewed and a case file is created.  The intern, with the help of an interpreter as necessary, will ask the Refugee a series of questions about his or her family, reason for seeking refugee status in South Africa, and any immediate needs from the centre (food, medical attention, etc.).  This screening process is used to determine whether the refugee has authentic and legitimate needs. Other tasks involve administering food vouchers and assisting social workers with individual refugees.

The educational services internship involves working with CTRC social workers who educate refugees requiring additional training and educational services.
 
The business administrative position entails assisting with daily administrative tasks, telephone communication and budgeting. Interns in this position will also be involved in preparing and submitting grant applications and other appeals for funding. Occasionally, interns may have an opportunity to attend conferences related to refugee concerns or to conduct research on legal issues pertaining to refugees at the Refugee Legal Centre, based on the University of Cape Town.

See photos of previous Cape Town Refugee Centre Interns in our internship gallery.

- Artwork created by refugee children from the Congo on display at the Cape Town Refugee Centre.

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