Quality teachers to nurture young minds

MBOMBELA – Their graduation ceremony was held at the Mbombela Civic Centre last week Tuesday.

NL is a non-profit organisation specialising in educational programmes.

Board member, Pinky Phosa said the graduation was a product of their hard work.

Tseli Scharer, the director of NL, said it is important to invest in children’s education. “As adults they will find employment easier, which will lead to lower levels of poverty and crime. This programme will lay the foundation for a better and more fulfilling life for children by stimulating them from an early age.”

Scharer emphasised that none of this could have been possible without the backing and assistance of their funders. These include Standard Bank, which has donated R11,6 million to NL over the past five years for the benefit of 300 ECD students and practitioners from rural communities in the province.

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She said it took the new graduates 18 months to complete the programme, which is accredited with the Sector Education and Training Authority (SETA) and carries a National Qualifications Framework (NQF) level four. The practitioners hail from all over the province.

Theunis Duvenhage, Standard Bank’s provincial head of retail and business banking for Limpopo and Mpumalanga, said their vision was to drive growth. “We are truly invested in growing Mpumalanga. It is part of our corporate vision to support education and make our children ready for the world of tomorrow,” he said.

According to Neil Ponting, chairman of NL, the most important period of a child’s life is the first six years.

“We are contributing to this by this graduation ceremony. It’s the culmination of hard work and dedication by NL,” Ponting said.

“We also work in collaboration with the Department of Social Development in many of our endeavours. We are deeply indebted to all our partners and funders over the years.”

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