Rotaract
Rotary’s side for young adults — same purpose, equal standing, building the next generation of community leaders. Service work isn’t a youth phase. It’s a half-century habit, and Rotaract is where it starts.
Rotaract in District 9350
What Rotaract is (since 1968)
Chartered at the Rotary Club of North Charlotte on 13 March 1968 — “Rotary in Action”. Since the 2019 Council on Legislation, Rotaract clubs hold the same Rotary International membership as Rotary clubs: same project funding through The Rotary Foundation, same voice at the convention, same recognition.
Who joins (no age cap since 2019)
Until 2019, Rotaract was for ages 18 to 30. The upper cap is gone — clubs choose the right demographic for their context. Around half of clubs worldwide are university or college-based; the other half meet in neighbourhoods. Both follow the same charter and unlock the same RI resources.
What members do
The seven Areas of Focus that drive Rotary — peace, disease prevention, water and sanitation, mother and child health, education, economic development, environment. Alongside the service work: peer-led professional development workshops, annual leadership rotations (every member is a club officer eventually), and cross-border projects via the Rotaract Pre-Convention.
In District 9350
Five chapters are currently in the directory — Wynberg, Claremont, Steenberg and Bellville in the Western Cape, plus Windhoek in Namibia. Each runs its own community projects, often in partnership with the local Rotary club that sponsors it.