Library a gateway to learning
Two sisters, Shumani and Fhatuwani Nembudani, are chartered accountants who recently opened their own company, the Dream in Colour Foundation (DCF), and decided to give back to the community.
LIMPOPO – Their company is based in Gauteng and they decided to encourage a culture of reading and learning with the youth in rural communities in the Vhembe region.
They approached Shayandima Secondary School outside Thohoyandou to turn unused classrooms into a library so learners can have access to reading material to enhance their education and help with school projects.
The official opening and handing over ceremony of the new library took place last Tuesday.
“We want to be social agents for change in the educational sphere by encouraging learners to take education seriously.
“As citizens of South Africa, we take inspiration from the late great Nelson Mandela who said education is the most powerful weapon which we can use to change the world.
“We take his vision and message to heart as we want to empower disadvantaged learners by giving them access to a library filled with books so they can empower themselves,” Shumani explained.
She added that they want to address poor academic grades by providing learners with additional study material and guides through e-learning modules.
“We want to introduce a Reader’s Corner at as many schools as possible to encourage the learners to broaden their vocabulary by reading more books,” she continued.
Deputy Principal of Shayandima Secondary School, Michael Maligana, said he was thankful for the donation of books and the library developed at the school and said he is positive that it will greatly assist with the development of the learners.
“We encourage our learners to make full use of the new library and read as many books as possible to enrich their knowledge.
“We hope the addition of the library will play an integral part in producing learners who achieve high marks,” he said.
He added that the community will also benefit from the library at the school because they will now have access to a vast array of knowledge through the books as well.
Representing the learners of Shayandima, Unarine Netshifhefhe said they are eager to make use of the library to enrich and broaden their knowledge.
