Edward Lawrence, Unicorn Factory CEO, comments on the acquisition – “Unicorn Factory is excited to invest in ATS, backing Onyi’s vision for the business. Onyi and her team have our full support, and we have complete faith in the organisation’s ability to deliver a positive impact in the world through the great work they do at ATS. We are excited to be part of the journey and the social impact that ATS will continue to bring.” Nwaneri spent 15 years with Afrika Tikkun, where she helped envision and develop its cradle-to-career model and built the commercial services business now fondly referred to as ATS. Although Africa Transformation Services is now an independent company with its own ownership and governance, its long-standing relationship with the Afrika Tikkun Group remains strong. This evolution enables each organisation to focus on its core strengths while continuing to collaborate where both missions align.
Afrika Tikkun will continue its work in developing children and young people through its cradle-to-career programmes, while Africa Transformation Services will focus on creating sustainable pathways into youth economic participation through recruitment, education, training, placement/employment and enterprise development services. Together, both entities create seamless pathways that translate potential into meaningful livelihoods.
The empowerment model is central to Nwaneri’s vision, who emphasises that young people cannot be taught independence through systems that remain dependent themselves, and education, while indispensable, may not be enough when the route into work, income or enterprise is still missing.
“We can help a young person build knowledge, confidence and leadership skills, but if they still cannot find work, earn an income or build a viable business, have we truly empowered them?” says Nwaneri. “The missing part of the journey is the crossing into economic opportunity. That is the work ATS is here to do.”
Nwaneri emphasises that, while the company’s ownership and name have changed, its purpose has not. She adds, “The vision, mission and values that have always guided our work remain firmly intact. This transition strengthens our ability to fulfil them. Our commitment to connecting young South Africans to meaningful economic opportunities through recruitment, workforce solutions, skills development, enterprise development and employment pathways remains unwavering.”
The statistics are compelling. South Africa had 21 million young people aged 15 to 34 in its working-age population in the first quarter of 2026. Of these, 4.7 million were unemployed. The unemployment rate stood at 60.9% among people aged 15 to 24 and 40.6% among those aged 25 to 34, according to Statistics South Africa.
The “experience paradox” is a common obstacle for many school-leavers and graduates, as employers want work experience, but a first job is often the only place to acquire it. Skills may not match current vacancies, professional networks are unevenly distributed, and young people have little access to the workplace exposure that helps them understand how organisations operate.
Recent South African research supports the importance of closing this practical gap. Youth employment programmes that combined work experience, relevant soft skills and structured, demand-driven job matching produced stronger outcomes than programmes without those elements.
For ATS, this reinforces what Nwaneri has suggested since first developing the career and placement business: training must be built around the intended result, which is sustainable access to the economy.
“A certificate cannot be the final measure of success,” she says. “It must be able to translate into a job, an income, a growing enterprise or the ability to employ somebody else. We have to keep the economic outcome in sight from the beginning.”
The company intends to begin with the needs of the labour market, identify the capabilities required and build the route between available talent and real demand.
Nwaneri’s ambition is to build an engine for economic participation: one that helps employers find and develop talent as well as potential credible suppliers, while giving more people a realistic way into the economy.
“South Africa’s unemployment crisis will not be solved by training people in isolation from the market, or by asking one sector to carry the problem alone,” she says. “Employers, government, funders, educators, investors and implementation partners all hold part of the answer. ATS is ready to work with those who are serious about building pathways that lead to sustainable economic empowerment.”
Looking ahead, Nwaneri sees youth employment and economic participation as continental questions, requiring African institutions and businesses to build stronger local solutions rather than treating young people primarily as recipients of aid.
“Africa has the people, talent and resources to build its own prosperity,” she says. “Our young population should be one of the continent’s greatest strengths, but that will only be true if people can participate, earn, create and lead. My vision is for ATS to help make that possible at scale.”
ATS is rallying employers, funders, government institutions, and implementation partners to join hands and open doors to brighter futures. “By expanding pathways into skills development, meaningful work, and full economic participation, we can empower individuals to rise, thrive, and transform their communities. This is more than a call—it’s an invitation to build hope, dignity, and lasting impact. Together, we can shape a future where opportunity is accessible, talent is nurtured, and progress is shared by all,” concludes Nwaneri.
