Speak & Soar.
Career guidance for Zambia’s next generation. A national project of THE FORGE under the Chapters program — delivered one district at a time, chapter by chapter across every province.
A national project, measured in the open.
A national project measured in the open. These numbers grow with every school, every session, every Career Guide, in every chapter.
Talent without
information.
The greatest obstacle facing Zambia’s young people is not ability, and it is not ambition. It is the widening gap between their potential and the information, exposure, financing and belief they need to act on it. In school halls across the country, the same pattern repeats — bright, hungry learners inches away from life-changing opportunities they have simply never been told exist.
These are the eight structural gaps Speak & Soar was built to close.
Tens of thousands of learners walk out of Grade 12 every year with certificates in hand but no framework for what comes next — no map of careers that exist, no exposure to working professionals, and no roadmap linking today's subjects to tomorrow's livelihood.
The majority of learners have never heard of HELSB, CDF Skills Bursaries, the Skills Development Fund or TEVET financing — and so they self-eliminate from opportunities they already qualify for, convinced that further education is only for families that can pay cash.
Vocational and technical pathways are still treated as a fallback for those who 'failed', instead of a legitimate, high-return route to employment and enterprise. Academically strong learners in particular are rarely encouraged to acquire practical skills alongside their studies.
Few learners have ever written a CV, sat through a mock interview, introduced themselves to a stranger with confidence, or met a working professional in the field they claim to want. They are asked to compete in a market they have never been shown.
Learners in rural and peri-urban schools face the steepest information gaps of all — fewer career fairs, fewer visiting professionals, weaker guidance departments, and thinner networks — compounding every other disadvantage they already carry.
Career guidance, where it exists, often reaches learners only in Grade 12 — long after subject combinations, aspirations and self-belief have already been set. School leaders themselves are asking for structured engagement that begins in Form One and grows with the learner.
Without self-discovery, most learners chase trends, prestige or parental pressure instead of purpose. The result is misaligned course choices, high dropout rates at tertiary level, and a generation of graduates working outside the calling they were built for.
Even when learners know what they want, many cannot articulate it — cannot speak up in class, cannot defend an idea, cannot present themselves in an interview or on paper. Confidence is not a soft skill; it is the delivery mechanism for every other skill they own.
Four pillars. One mission:
prepare every learner.
Speak & Soar is not a one-off school talk. It is a structured, repeatable curriculum delivered by trained Forge Ambassadors, engineered around four reinforcing pillars — each one directly answering a gap we have seen with our own eyes in the classroom. Together they move a learner from confusion to clarity, from clarity to plan, and from plan to action.
Career Awareness & Self-Discovery
We take learners far beyond the four traditional careers most classrooms still repeat. Through guided reflection, honest conversation and structured self-audit, learners begin to identify their strengths, interests, values and personality — and then map those to the full universe of careers that actually exist in Zambia today: teaching, nursing, agriculture, engineering, technology, creative industries, the trades, public service and entrepreneurship. The goal is a learner who can name who they are becoming, and why.
Opportunity Literacy & Financing Pathways
Talent without information is talent trapped. We demystify the funding and progression ecosystem — HELSB loans and scholarships, TEVET and Skills Development Fund pathways, CDF Skills Bursaries, university admission cycles, private scholarships and community sponsorships. Learners leave knowing where to apply, when to apply, what they qualify for, and who to ask — so that no learner drops out of their future simply because no one told them the door was open.
Value Creation & Early Enterprise
We reframe secondary school as a launch pad, not a waiting room. Learners are equipped to draft a first CV, articulate their story, identify a real problem in their community, and begin building a small service, product or skill-based hustle before university even begins. The message is direct: your future does not start after Grade 12 — it starts the moment you decide to create value where you already are.
Voice, Confidence & Goal Architecture
Through structured debate, presentation and one-on-one coaching, learners practise speaking about their own future — clearly, boldly and with purpose. We layer that voice on top of a practical goal-setting framework: define the destination, work backwards, align daily habits and decisions, then execute with discipline. Learners leave not only with dreams, but with a written plan and the courage to defend it.
A repeatable model, built for national scale.
- 01
School Engagement
We approach schools through DEBS offices, school heads and PTA structures.
- 02
Volunteer Recruitment
Local university students, graduates and professionals apply as Career Guides.
- 03
Volunteer Training
Career Guides are trained in curriculum delivery, classroom conduct and safeguarding.
- 04
Weekly Sessions
One-hour sessions per school, every week, throughout the school year.
- 05
Monitoring & Evaluation
Attendance, learner feedback and outcome tracking on every session.
- 06
Reporting & Learning
Monthly, quarterly and annual reports shared with schools, partners and the public.
Built for everyone invested in Zambia’s youth.
Leave with a clearer path, a draft CV, and the confidence to talk about life after Grade 12.
We complement what you already teach. You handle academics; we handle career exposure.
Follow weekly updates, photos and videos of what your children are learning.
Workbooks, transport, career day events — every contribution goes directly to learners.
A community-implemented platform aligned with national youth and skills priorities.
Locally owned, locally delivered. Volunteers serve the schools they grew up around.
From the field. Every week.
SPEAK & SOAR ARRIVES IN THE NORTH AT CHIBA DAY SECONDARY SCHOOL 📌
Today, 15th July 2026, marks a defining milestone for Speak & Soar: Career Guidance for Zambia's Next Generation — a project under the Campus Leadership Initiative, one of the programs of THE FORGE — as the Kasama Chapter is officially piloted at Chiba Day Secondary School, reaching 41 Grade 12 learners.
Speak & Soar at St. Patrick's Secondary School, Choma District
On 2 July 2026, Speak & Soar reached 135 learners at St. Patrick's Secondary School in Choma District with an interactive session on career guidance, sponsorship, goal setting and intentional personal development.
Official Flag-Off of the Speak & Soar Project at Shampande Secondary School
On 1 July 2026, the Speak & Soar Project held its first school engagement at Shampande Secondary School in Choma District, reaching 135 learners with sessions on career pathways, skills development, sponsorship opportunities and entrepreneurship.
Zambia’s greatest resource is its people.
Speak & Soar is THE FORGE’s way of investing in them — early, locally, and at national scale.