Rotary Past President, Ian van Niekerk in 1992, originally conceived the Rotary Careers Handbook. Successive Rotarians and Committees then worked upon the book, until it was originally published in June 1993.

Ian and his fellow Rotarians felt that assistance to the youth and unemployed was a major priority at that stage of Zimbabwe's economic and potential decline. The objectives of the book are to help students to develop by studying efficiently, researching and choosing career paths, and then in obtaining employment, or setting up their own businesses.

Although a variety of these aspects were covered at the time by international publications the cost of single specialised copies was well beyond the purse of the average Zimbabwean.

Accordingly, it was decided that the club should publish a comprehensive guide covering the wide spectrum of needs in one affordable volume.

Unfortunately, free production was beyond the scope of Club finances, and very few books could be purchased by our impoverished population, even at a nominal price.

The Rotarians of the Highlands Club now feel that the book is needed even more urgently at this stage of Zimbabwe's history, in particular for HIV and other orphans, disbanded political youth militias and the micro and small scale sector whose businesses were destroyed by Operation Murambatsvina in June 2005.