Launch of the 38th Mandela Day container library

On Thursday 13 March Breadline Africa, in partnership with the Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory, launched the 38th Mandela Day container library.

Gobandlovu Primary School, situated in the rural community of Esikhawini outside Richards Bay, is a nurturing educational environment for 1 052 children. The principal, Mrs Manyathi, is a pioneer and leader in the community, and was aptly acknowledged for her developmental spirit by the Department of Basic Education representatives during the ceremony.

This particular library is the first of its kind in the Mandela Day Libraries Project. In November last year, Breadline Africa started a conversation with Wipro Technologies and shared some of the challenges the project faces in having libraries open for longer hours, allowing access to the greater community.

The outcome of this discussion was that Wipro decided that further investment was needed. They shared the vision of providing access to the educational resources that a library provides, but wanted to extend their investment into small business development and the economic upliftment of the community.

Through consultation with the principal, Lungi, an educated and unemployed mother in the community who had been volunteering at the school, was selected by Wipro. Over the Christmas period she was sent to Johannesburg for training and assisted with the registration of an IT business.

Understanding that she did not have access to the capital equipment to start, Wipro invested in two computers and a copier/scanner, which are located in the library, so that she would be able to manage both her business and the needs of library users.

In addition to this, they have agreed to pay Lungi a stipend for the first year to help her kickstart her business. This is without doubt an incredible investment in education and access to critical resources within this rural community. We applaud Wipro Technologies for taking the Mandela Day Libraries Project into the progressive and innovative space that it has, and we acknowledge that their foresight will serve as a benchmark to other corporates looking to invest in South African children and communities in an impactful and sustainable way.

Over and above the extension of investment within the Mandela Day container library, Wipro visited the school and saw that they had a computer room which had turned into a white elephant. The computers were not working and the computer room had become a non-functional space as the cost of refurbishment was out of reach for the school. Wipro Technologies committed to invest R130 000 to give Gobandlovu Primary School’s computer lab a complete overhaul.

It is not surprising that Mrs Manyathi, overwhelmed with gratitude, was close to tears during her speech as she tried to articulate what the project – which she described as a miracle for the school – meant.

The launch ceremony, as most are, was well attended, with representatives from the Department of Education, principals of neighbouring schools, the Gobandlovu school governing body, parents, traditional leaders and six Wipro staff in attendance. We were affirmed of the commitment from all school stakeholders in making the project a success, and the learners celebrated through dance, drama and poetry.