FOR many children across Africa, playing sports on the big stage is a childhood dream — scoring the winning goal in a major tournament; throwing that last-minute 3-pointer to clinch the victory at the NBA playoff finals; testing their skills alongside the finest players in the world and rubbing shoulders with other sport icons.

For some, sport is the hope of an exit plan from the communities in which they grew up.

Sports also have a unique power to unite divided groups of people. Just one powerful and symbolic example came in South Africa in the early 90s, amid great tension over the appointment of Nelson Mandela as the country’s first Black president.

Yet, after the South African National Rugby team clinched the World Cup at home in 1995, the crowd filled mostly with white South Africans quickly forgot their animosity. Both white and Black South Africans started chanting with excitement “Nelson! Nelson! Nelson!” across Johannesburg’s Ellis Park Stadium. This moment in time will always be remembered as one of, as the New York Times puts it, the “ultimate examples of sport’s power to heal”.

Sports also help to promote human development. And according to Makhtar Diop, the current International Finance Corporation’s Managing Director and Executive Vice President, “reviving school sports in elementary schools — particularly in the most impoverished areas where children do not have access to sports infrastructure or physical education programs — is an investment for life.”

Many sport stars, on finding success, are returning to their roots and contributing to the economic growth and development of the communities they came from, via poverty alleviation schemes, supporting charitable causes, or investing in facilities to encourage more children to participate in sports. Like Nelson Mandela once said, “Sport has the power to change the world…Sport can create hope where once there was only despair.”

We’ve put together a (non-exhaustive) list of some of West Africa’s biggest sport stars, who are using their platforms to help make a positive impact, transform lives, and uplift their communities.

1. Didier Drogba

Drogba’s name continues to echo in the minds of global football fans three years after the former captain and all-time highest goal scorer for Côte d’Ivoire retired from playing football.

Aside from his prowess on the football pitch, Drogba is also known for his philanthropic work in his home country.

In 2005, during the country’s civil unrest and just moments after Côte d’Ivoire qualified for the 2006 World Cup, Drogba leveraged his global reputation and used his voice to call on his country to end the conflict.

“From the north, south, centre, and west, we proved today that all Ivorians can coexist and play together with a shared aim — to qualify for the World Cup,” Drogba said, in a speech in front of a TV crew gathered with the players in the dressing room of the stadium. “We promised you that the celebrations would unite the people — today we beg you on our knees.”

“The one country in Africa with so many riches must not descend into war,” he continued. “Please lay down your weapons and hold elections.”

Described by the BBC as “one of football’s most extraordinary tales”, change did follow in the weeks and months following Drogba’s speech — which continued to be played on TV sets across the country — and a ceasefire was signed.

Since then, Drogba’s humanitarian activities through the Didier Drogba Foundation, have earned him a quite stunning list of awards and recognitions — including an honorary degree from a university in his home town, Abidjan. 

He was appointed as a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Development Programme in 2007; in 2020, received the UEFA President’s Award, which recognises both professional excellence and exemplary personal qualities; and in October 2021, he became a Goodwill Ambassador for Sports and Health with the World Health Organisation (WHO). Meanwhile in 2009, he also donated £3 million from an endorsement with Pepsi to build a hospital in Abidjan. A champion in every sense of the word.

2. Sadio Mané

Mané, the player of the tournament of the just concluded Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), is one player who doesn’t shy away from giving back to his hometown. In June 2021, the one-time African Footballer of the Year donated almost $700,000 to help fund the construction of a hospital in his home of Bambali in Senegal. The hospital will reportedly become the first in the village, which is about 400 kilometers outside Senegal’s capital city Dakar.

He’d previously, in 2019, also donated close to $350,000 to build a new secondary school in Bambali, and in 2018, gifted 300 Liverpool shirts to locals there to wear during the UEFA Champions League final. Amid the COVID-19 outbreak, Mané also donated £41,000 to health authorities in Senegal. Without a doubt, despite his success, Mané hasn’t forgotten his roots and the community that raised him.

3. Antonio Rüdiger

The German-born Sierra Leonean, Antonio Rüdiger, is a one-time winner of Europe’s most prestigious soccer accolade — the UEFA Champions League (UCL) — with Chelsea football club. Just last month, the Chelsea FC centre-back launched his charitable foundation for education in his home country of Sierra Leone.

Rüdiger pledged $40,000 to the foundation, as well as auctioning off his signed Chelsea shirt, to help improve the life and access to quality education of the people in his local community. According to him: “This foundation means a lot to me, but I don’t want it to be a one-man show, I want everyone to admire it, especially the younger generation.” He is a player much loved back home in Sierra Leone.

4. Masai Ujiri

Ujiri is a Nigerian professional basketball executive, former player, and the current vice-chairman and president of Canada-based Toronto Raptors Basketball Club.

Back in 2003 and inspired by the impact basketball has had in his own life, Ujiri co-founded the nonprofit Giants of Africa, aiming to use basketball as a way to encourage young children across Africa to dream big. In September 2021, Ujiri and the foundation announced a commitment to build 100 basketball courts across Africa over the next 10 years, including in Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, Côte d’Ivoire, and Burkina Faso.

“Sports are one of the best ways that we can help our young people achieve their goals and I look forward to hearing the stories of the thousands of young people who will be able to utlise these courts to help make their communities stronger over the next 10 years and beyond,” Ujiri said.

5 & 6. The Ogwumike Sisters

Next on the list are the Nigerian-American Ogwumike sisters, Nneka and Chiney. Both sisters currently play as forwards for the Los Angeles Sparks professional basketball team, while Nneka also currently serves as president of the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) players’ union.

In 2014, just a few weeks after the abduction of the Chibok schoolgirls — which sparked the #BringBackOurGirls movement — the Ogwumike sisters challenged girls’ basketball teams to intensify their support for the work UNICEF is doing in Nigeria to protect and promote the rights of women and girls.

The Ogwumike sisters partnered with the U.S. Fund for UNICEF’s Girls’ Education Project, with the aim of helping millions of girls better access quality education — with a focus on Northern Nigeria — through getting more children in school, developing scholarships for female teachers, and creating safe spaces for girls.

In a 2019 charity visit to Queens College, in Lagos, Chiney Ogwumike said that “there is more to basketball than having the regular skills set,” further emphasising the need for young children to be focused on their dreams, in a society where it can be hard to do so.

And in 2020, Nneka Ogwumike led WNBA players in advocating for reduced gender pay gaps in the sport. The 8-year collective bargaining agreement for WNBA players will increase the salary cap for women in the sport, as well as creating a variety of career and quality of life benefits for WNBA players — including childcare stipends and full salary during maternity leave.

7. Kamaru Usman

Kamarudeen “Kamaru” Usman is a Nigerian-American professional mixed martial artist and the current UFC Welterweight Champion. In June 2021, during a visit to his home country Nigeria, the UFC champ decided to collaborate with the Lagos Food Bank Initiative to donate and personally share food items to about 1,000 underserved kids in Lagos.

“Being born in a place like Nigeria helped mould me into the man I am today,” he reportedly said at the event.

With it’s 12,000-strong volunteer network, the Lagos Food Bank Initiative, the first indigenous food bank in Nigeria, has been able to reach 1.6 million people in more than 130 communities in Nigeria. You can read more about their work here.

8. Wilfried Zaha

Dazet Wilfried Armel Zaha is a professional footballer for Premier League club Crystal Palace and the Côte d’Ivoire’s national team. The English-Ivorian national uses his Zaha Foundation, spearheaded by him and his family, to help rebuild inner-city areas so young people can better engage in social activities in a secure, accessible environment. 

According to the foundation, this is a “passion” of Zaha’s, “who himself grew up silently developing his craft with his friends on the streets and in park areas.” Zaha has also spoken about how he was left homeless at the age of six while growing up in London, where he moved at age four with his family.

Through his foundation, Zaha also funds an orphanage run by his sister back home and donates 10% of his earnings to these good causes.

9. Anthony Joshua

Anthony Oluwafemi Olaseni Joshua OBE, 32, is a British-Nigerian professional boxer. The 2012 London Olympics gold medallist and two-time former unified World Heavyweight Champion is a strong believer in giving back. On multiple occasions, he’s worked to support the Forever Hope Foundation, a nonprofit that partners with children’s charities and organisations on fundraising.

In 2017, for example, Joshua and the Forever Hope Foundation raised £10,000 to support Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital in the UK. Alongside this, as highlighted by the foundation, he’s also worked to help raise money for anti-gang crime charities, donated money to help support the rehabilitation of offenders, and donated numerous items for charity auctions — such as a pair of signed boxing gloves.

-Global Citizen

STAFF REPORTER |

A school in Mpumalanga was gutted by fire on Wednesday, according to the Mpumalanga Department of Education.

“The Mpumalanga Department of Education has learnt that one of the classrooms of Sekemisa Primary School in Verena at Thembisile Hani Local Municipality in Nkangala District caught fire,” the department said.

The fire extinguishers were called to put down the flames.

“Members of the community tried their best to extinguish the fire until the fire extinguishers arrived and helped to put down the flames.”

The police were at the scene and a case of arson will be investigated.

At the moment, the department said the circumstances that caused the fire is still unknown.

More updates will be provided as more information comes to light.

Last week, the community of Luka Village near Rustenburg in North West woke up to shocking news that their school called Ramotse Primary School has burnt down.
The Department’s spokesperson, Elias Malindi said the cause of the fire is still unknown, however, they suspect that it was a criminal activity.

The fire destroyed a computer lab, National School Nutrition Programme storage and a block of toilets for the girls and boys.

“The cause of the fire is still unknown but the school community suspects that it was criminal activities. The fire destroyed a computer lab with 40 computers, photocopiers, printers, Mathematics lab (1 projector, one screen, manipulative cupboard, interactive board and 18 tables), National School Nutrition Programme storage (food for learners) and Learner Teaching Supply Material (Stationery and textbooks) and a block of toilets for the girls and boys,” said Malindi.
The MEC for Education, Mmaphefo Matsemela condemned in ‘strongest terms the alleged burning of the school. “I take this moment to condemn in its strongest terms the alleged burning of Ramotse Primary school. Such incidents are clearly targeted at delaying the
provisioning of education to an African child, “she said.

– Inside Education

STAFF REPORTER |

FINANCE Minister Enoch Godongwana has announced an allocation of R32.6 billion for financial support to current bursary holders and first-year students under the National Student Financial Aid Scheme.

Godongwana tabled his maiden budget speech in Parliament on Wednesday afternoon.

“In 2017, the government announced a policy for fee-free higher education. We are announcing an additional allocation of R32.6 billion for financial support to current bursary holders and first-year students under the National Student Financial Aid Scheme,” he said.

Godongwana indicated that further shortfalls will be funded from within the baseline of the Department of Higher Education.

The minister has commended teachers for sacrifices during the pandemic in ensuring that children get educated.

“Madam Speaker, at the height of the COVID-19 our teachers had to make tremendous sacrifices to ensure that our children get education,” said Godongwana.

Last year, Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation, Dr Blade Nzimande said that the student debt is growing in the university system.

Nzimande said it is extremely worrying to note that inequitable patterns of student success still prevail. 
He said this was especially true for African and coloured male students.

Adding that this category of students continues to be the least successful in the university system.

“There are four categories of affected students that have been identified. They include NSFAS [National Student Financial Aid Scheme] students, students who are recipients of other scholarships and bursaries, self-paying students – including the so-called ‘missing middle’ students, and international students,” said Nzimande.

The minister added that his department and higher education stakeholders have acknowledged that there have sometimes been delays in the processing of historic debt of NSFAS qualifying students. 

He said the main challenges are linked to administrative challenges in resolving the debt.

“The Department is working with NSFAS and institutions to ensure a speedy resolution of the processing of historic debt claims,” he said.

Inside Education has previously reported that student historic debt to universities has escalated to approximately R14 billion.

Analysts say this has caused a sustainability crisis in our higher education institutions.

According to the Universities South Africa (USAf), this crisis has been ongoing for decades and that it is now time for a government-led policy process that produces a long-term, sustainable solution.
At the time, USAf’s Chief Executive Officer Professor Ahmed Bawa said student debt cannot possibly be resolved at the institutional level.
“USAf must signal now, as we did in December 2017, that the long-term sustainability of this bursary programme is of deep concern to us,” said Bawa.

-Inside Education

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WENDY MOTHATA |

GAUTENG Premier David Makhura said on Monday his administration would be introducing dedicated funding for the introduction of Coding and Robotics at primary schools in a bid to meet the challenges of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, or 4IR.

Makhura was speaking during the State of the Province Address held at the Gauteng Provincial Legislature’s chambers in Johannesburg.

“We introducing dedicated funding for the introduction of Coding and Robotics to meet the challenges of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR). We have identified 33 primary schools Grades R to 3 and 90 Grade 7 schools to participate in the pilot Coding and Robotics Programme,” said Makhura.

Since 2009, about R2.2 billion has been invested towards bursaries from which 30 000 students have benefited through the GCR financial assistance.

For the academic year 2021, Makhura said the GCR has set aside R420 million for Gauteng students who have done exceptionally well in matric results.

“We have harnessed ICT to provide smart schools and classrooms of the future.”

“This is across all schooling levels from Grade R to Grade 12. This includes supplying and delivering tablets and robotics coding kits to 62 primary schools. Grade 1-3 learners in 62 Primary schools have received mathematics manipulatives, including the abacus,” he said.

Makhura said since 1994, the democratic government has invested in the building of new houses, schools, clinics, hospitalisation, roads and streets, electricity and water connection.

 “Since 1994 Educational outcomes have been a key area of pride. In 2014 we will continue to invest in the modernisation and quality delivery of education especially improving educational outcomes in township schools,” he said.

The Premier said: “Our 2014 decision to invest in the modernisation of our education system has proven fruitful over the last eight years. This progress has been the result of incremental interventions, which included ICT, investment in infrastructure, and inputs in teacher training, adequate provision of classroom resources.”

Makhura added that his administration is working with TVET colleges to provide ICT training. Through the partnership with Tshimologong and Wits.

Early Childhood Development provides a critical stage in the cognitive development of a child with last implications for their future learning capabilities. Makhura said the work included investing in producing practitioners who would make an impact on the early stage of a child’s development.

“We are pleased to report that 2 467 ECD Practitioners have achieved a qualification at NQF Level 6. We were also able to increase the percentage of public schools offering grade R to 95,1% in 2021. This is an increase of 24 new Grade R sites, from the 1 386 sites that offered grade R in 2020,” he said.

 Between the years 2014 and 2019, the national senior certificate results have improved by an average of 85%. For the class of 2021 forty-four percent (50%) of bachelor passes in South Africa were in Gauteng.

“We have moved from 79% to 84% in terms of throughput rate largely because the focus was put on township schools to make learning conditions conducive.”

Makhura said: “We have ensured that the performance gap between learners from fee-paying and no-fee paying schools is narrowed. Despite being one of the areas severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic since 2020, education has continued to record some great achievements.”

In the 2021 matric results, Gauteng was the second-best performing province with an 82.8% pass rate, which was a slight drop of 1% from 2020. A total of 130 schools in the province achieved a 100% pass rate, while 462 had a pass rate that was above 90%.

 “Four of the top 10 districts in the country were from Gauteng. Since the year 2020, we have seen unprecedented disruptions to the schooling system due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite this negative impact, our education system has shown resilience as evidenced by remarkable progress, especially the matric results,” the premier said.

• –Inside Education.

WENDY MOTHATA |

PARENTS at Hoërskool Jan Viljoen have called for equal treatment for all learners and equivalent diversity representatives at the school.

On Sunday, Gauteng Education MEC Panyaza Lesufi called for unity at the Hoërskool Jan Viljoen in the west of Johannesburg.

This comes after a violent incident that took place among black and white learners at the school last week.

Lesufi condemned a scuffle between the parents of Jan Viljoen that took place during a previously scheduled meeting, stating that parents must embrace a truly non-racial South Africa and set a good example for their children.

In his opening statement, Lesufi told parents of Hoërskool Jan Viljoen that the school is embarking on an important process of change and he encouraged the management team to decide to enable diversity in the school.

Lesufi informed the parents that an investigation will be conducted with the assistance of the South African Human Rights Commission, and further urged parents to protect their school.

The SAHRC has launched an investigation into alleged racially-motivated clashes between black and white learners at the school.

“The SAHRC will investigate everyone. There is an independent body who is going to investigate everyone and if they say act, I will act decisively, “said Lesufi.

 Addressing the parents and school leadership of Hoërskool Jan Viljoen in Randfontein, Lesufi said, “our purpose is to ensure that we deliver quality education and save our children from the trauma of racism.”

The educators of the school indicated to Lesufi that they need support in managing diversity, and the school management team has risen to the task by actively working on appointing an ethnically diverse group of educators.

One of the parents attending the meeting has disagreed that the fight between black and white learners at Jan Viljoen was not racially motivated.

“I’m speaking on the behalf of parents, what happened, happed we can’t undo it and one thing that I’m 100% sure in my mind is that the incident was not racial. It was kids. This is kids attending a school, kids that want to learn, kids that want to become something in life. Yes, there is a lot of errors and I don’t decline it. Parents, please don’t make this thing a racial or political thing because this is not what it is. This is our kids, this is our school and our teachers. We want our kids to be safe it doesn’t matter the colour. We should stand together, let’s leave what is behind,” said the parent.

A parent to a Grade 11 learner, Nozipho Mabena said that the name of the school must be changed. Mabena pleaded for the protection of the learners at the school against incidents of racism.

The MEC further highlighted the issue of sexual harassment at the school which was raised by the learners. He told the parents that the teacher accused of sexually violating learners has been suspended.

“We thought we were coming to the school to deal with allegations of racism but were met with serious allegations of sexual harassment,” said Lesufi.

Lesufi urged parents to teach children to accept and embrace each other.

 “Education starts at home. Let us teach our children from home to accept and embrace each other. If we don’t do that we will never achieve our dream of non-racial South Africa,” he said.

-Inside Education

WENDY MOTHATA |

THE Department of Basic Education has launched “The National Policy on the Prevention and Management of learner pregnancy in schools” in Platinum Village near Rustenburg in the North West.

The department said that the policy is aimed at reducing the increasing number of learner pregnancies at schools.

The policy on the prevention and management of learner pregnancy in schools was published in 2021.

Last year, the department announced that schools would be required to report to the police where the pregnant learner is under the age of 16.

 “The South African Police Services                               

(SAPS) will be informed to investigate and arrest perpetrators in cases of statutory rape,” said the department.

Department of Basic Education spokesperson Elijah Mhlanga said that unintended pregnancy affects the lives of many young people, often limiting their personal growth.

“Early and unintended pregnancy affects the lives of many young people, often limiting their personal growth, their pursuit of rewarding careers and their ambitions, with an incalculable impact on South Africa’s socio-economic landscape,” said Mhlanga.

 Mhlanga said that care, counselling and support for pregnant learners is critical for retention in schools.

The Deputy Minister of Basic Education, Reginah Mhaule said that it is worrying that the country has recorded 132 000 deliveries amongst girls aged between 10 and 19 for the 2020/2021 financial year.

Mhaule said that the policy will help educate learners about prevention methods.

“Through this policy, we reiterate that to prevent the early and unintended pregnancies, the department will continue to strengthen the provision of comprehensive education, through the curriculum,” said Mhaule.

Director-General of the Department of Basic Education, Hubert Mathanzima Mweli said the school communities need to work together to ensure the implementation of the policy.

“The policy was launched and we hope that it will help in reducing the incidence of learner pregnancy affecting children of school going age. Our school communities need to work together to ensure the implementation of the policy,” said Mweli.

According to the DBE, the policy includes some of the following laws:

• – The policy will provide sexual, reproductive health services to enable learners to make informed choices.

• – To ensure the return and retention of learners following childbirth into the appropriate grade into the school.
• – To facilitate access for pregnant learners to ante-natal care through collaboration with the social sector partners and NGOs.
• – To ensure that schools provide a stigma-free non-discriminatory and non-judgmental environment for pregnant learners and those with babies to support their physical and psychological health and dignity.
• – Schools will provide a positive and supportive environment where all pregnant learners can access professional advice, information, referrals, treatment, care, counseling and support.
• – Schools will become health and rights-promoting institutions and act as inclusive centres of learning, care and support, through the integrated School Health Programme.
• – No educator, school staff member or fellow learner may discriminate against, humiliate or abuse a learner physically, emotionally or psychologically, based on their pregnancy or post-pregnancy status.

–Inside Education