Networks Unlimited Africa, an innovative IT company situated in Africa, made a generous donation to the Nokuphila School. The school is located in Tembisa, a region in South Africa, and it’s affiliated with the Love Trust organization. Love Trust is a South African organization that provides education to underprivileged children in the area, and the Nokuphila School is just one of its many projects. Since 2009, Love Trust has provided services to more than 20,000 individuals across South Africa.

Background

The Nokuphila School was originally founded in January 2009, and it wanted to serve as a source of hope for the community of Tembisa; the name Nokuphila literally translates to “place of light.” It started with a class of 45 preschoolers from Tembisa, a township with high unemployment, poverty and crime. Tembisa was also chosen as the spot for this project because of its lack of resources for education, especially when it comes to pre-school education. Statistically, only 5% of adults in Tembisa have completed some kind of education beyond high school, and more than 10% of adults in Tembisa have received no schooling at all.

Children are admitted to the Nokuphila school based on their vulnerability, and the school provides them a number of enrichment opportunities: early childhood development and primary education, nutritious meals for breakfast and lunch, safe and reliable transport to and from school, after school care, and extracurricular activities. While the school now serves 340 children, there are plans for the development of the physical school building so that the Nokuphila school can admit and educate more at-risk youth.

Networks Unlimited Africa Supports Education in Tembisa

Having a tech giant like Networks Unlimited Africa donate to the school is game-changing, in terms of the number of children they can serve and the amount of resources the school can provide. The donation of R130,000 ($7,459), raised from the tech company’s annual charity golf event, will be used for two things: art supplies for the school’s art curriculum, and IT equipment, to support the essential technology that helps to keep the school up and running.

Networks Unlimited Africa provides innovative technology to Africa, but the company has also committed to helping improve the regions that it serves. It was recently certified as a Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) Level 2 contributor in June 2020. BEE (Black Economic Empowerment) is a racially inclusive initiative by the South African government that attempts to rectify the economic inequalities brought about from Apartheid. The Love Trust fund has been a B-BBEE partner of Networks Unlimited Africa since 2018, which allows the company to help the Love Trust foundation in its goal of providing education in South Africa.

The donation couldn’t have come at a better time, either. Soon after the donation was announced, COVID-19 leaped onto the global stage and forced many schools to shut down or cut back on education. The Love Trust organization was hit hard and was forced to redo the budget and redistribute their finances, including their work with the Nokuphila school. While the situation is still uncertain, the Love Trust organization is grateful for its partnership with Networks Unlimited Africa and their dedication to childhood education in South Africa, especially since its support has made it possible for The Love Trust to continue to serve its community in these trying times.

– Hannah Daniel
Photo: Flickr