Mandela Week activities encouraged everyone to take action and inspire change by dedicating 67 minutes to volunteer work or community service, reflecting the 67 years Mandela devoted to public service.
Zamukukhanya Public Primary School in Zwide
Staff and students from various faculties and departments gathered at Zamukukhanya Public Primary School on Mandela Day 18 July. Service, such as pharmaceutical, legal and psychosocial were brought to the Zwide community, with others getting their hands dirty cleaning the school yard and planting trees.
The Faculty of Education literacy team, with Dr Eileen Scheckle and Nozuko Rhayi, spent the day engaging young minds with stories and donating books to foster a love for reading. The smiles and curiosity of the children reminded us of the power of education to inspire change.
Ekuphumleni Elderly Home
The Nelson Mandela University Engagement Office, in collaboration with the Zwide Development Forum and the South African Police Service (SAPS), visited the Ekuphumleni Elderly Home in Zwide.
The team participated in activities such as yard maintenance, social interaction with the elderly residents, and engaging in meaningful conversations. Additionally, all participating stakeholders delivered keynote messages to the elderly individuals.
Nelson Mandela Day Symposium 2024
The Faculty of Science hosted an annual Nelson Mandela Day Symposium to launch National Science Week 2024. Dr Zikhona Tywabi-Ngeva from Chemistry shared her latest research on water treatment using pineapple leaves and Dr Gaathier Mahed, who took the audience through his Science journey.
Special insights on Science education were also provided by Prof Talat Rahman from the University of Florida. These 67 minutes for Nelson Mandela Day were dedicated to sharing scientific knowledge on how to "Change the World."
#Coding4Mandela tournament
The #Coding4Mandela tournament kicked off with 30,000 learners from across Africa and Indonesia competing to showcase their coding skills with an incredible display of creativity, innovation, and teamwork. These young minds are breaking barriers and bridging the digital divide, one code at a time!
Lorraine Primary School Gr 6 learners, West Coast schools and Ncedo High School Gr 10 & 11 learners interact with coding.
Visiting Dora Nginza Hospital
The Engagement Office, in partnership with the Zwide Development Forum (ZDF), visited the Dora Nginza Hospital during Mandela Week to interact with the children and parents with several fun and educational activities.
Through the Engagement Office, the University seeks to bridge the gap between the institution and the community by addressing societal challenges and co-constructing meaningful solutions with the communities, which will be beneficial to them.
“The ZDF thought that it would be great to engage with them [children] to show that they still matter, and they are still important in society. Nelson Mandela, whom our university is named after, loved children and he also emphasised the importance of investing in children and showing them appreciation and love,” said Oyama Mkaza, Senior Manager, Hubs of Convergence, Engagement Office.
“Through the Engagement Office, Mandela University seeks to bridge a gap between the institution and community by addressing societal challenges, by co-constructing meaningful solutions with the communities that will be beneficial to them.
“Today, we are focusing on one of our organization's pillars, which is education. We are here to bring joy, and love, and to show these kids that they are important and loved, regardless of their situation. We chose this hospital for its location and because we learned that some kids in township hospitals need extra care,” said Mawethu Mathu, Deputy Chairperson of the Zwide Development Forum.
The Zwide Community Development Project is a community-led initiative driven by Zwide Community members in convergence with the Mandela University’s Engagement Office’s Hubs of Convergence (HoC).
The community, alongside the HoC are exploring developmental projects for the alleviation of poverty in Zwide, Gqeberha. The various individually led organizations within the Zwide Community, however, need support in terms of planning, conceptualisation and funding of these projects, including extreme poverty, abuse of drugs, gangsterism and unemployment.
Giving Campaign
#MandelaDay2024
#ItIsInYourHands
To give back in your own way visit the Mandela University Giving Campaign page https://www.mandela.ac.za/Giving-to.../Giving-Campaign