His dedication makes him a shining light

These are the words of Daveyton resident Ofentse Ditshego.

The former chairperson of the University of Johannesburg Student Representative Council (SRC) always knew he was destined to be a leader.

He was raised by his grandmother, Elizabeth Ditshego, who nurtured his spirit of leadership at a very young age.

“Yes, there were challenges growing up, but I always drew so much strength from her,” he said.

At just 23, he has been nominated as a mentee by the world’s number one wealth coach, JT Foxx,

Upon completing high school, he was presented with an opportunity to pursue an entrepreneurial qualification with the Raymond Ackerman Academy Business School, where he graduated as the top most influential student in his class.

Apart from being a motivational speaker, businessman and engaging in socio-economic issues, he is also currently enrolled for a BComm accounting qualification with the University of South Africa (Unisa).

He is also the managing director of David Ditshego Services, a student accommodation and distributing services business.

With his spirit of giving back to his community, he started non-profit organisations with his friend Thulani Mzamo, called Fast Lane and Embarking Innocent Souls, which are sister organisations.

“One of the reason why we decided to start these NPOs was because we saw that youth in the community got involved in a lot of criminal activities,” he said.

“We realised this was not solely because of economic disparities, but there was a lack of community engagement projects that targeted the youth.”

Fast Lane Desire and Embarking Innocent Souls target the young people in the community, providing them with proper nurturing of their skills, after identifying those skills by using a training needs assessment questionnaire.

With his interest in issues surrounding his community, Ditshego has been honoured as a board member of an Etwatwa radio station, which will be launched in a few months.

“It is a shame that a community such as Daveyton, which has so much history, does not have a platform to share local news and local content,” said Ditshego.

The core objective of the radio station is to establish an engagement platform, to get the community involved in dialogue.

This concept will not only open dialogues, but it will create job opportunities, re-brand and change the perception of the community.

“This is a long life legacy to which that we committing ourselves,” he added.

“I am willing to commit my time and effort towards the enlistment of our township and seeing the youth progress into bigger things than they can imagine.

“Impossible is nothing; as long as organisations such as Fast Lane and Embarking Innocent Souls are still in existence, the full potential of the youth can be unlocked.”

Listen to Ofentse Ditshego’s message for the youth.