Inspirational leader flies South African flag high
Farai Mubaiwa's (22) confidence in Africa and her will to continually better the living conditions of all those who inhabit the continent ripples great changes that will stretch far into the future.
LOCALLY born, Farai Mubaiwa (22) recently returned from her two-week trip to London, where she was privileged to meet the Queen of England after she received the prestigious Queen’s Young Leader Award (QYL) for 2017.
The award was made while Farai was a 2016 student representative council member at Stellenbosch University, where she studied towards her accounting degree.
Recipients of the QYL Award receive a unique combination of training and mentoring which includes a one-week residential programme in the United Kingdom, during which they collect their awards from Her Majesty The Queen.
The student and founder of Africa Matters now looks forward to studying towards her masters degree in accounting on a bursary at Kings College in England.
“I think my family might’ve been slightly more excited about this than I was,” admitted Farai. “All on the programme received business training from Cambridge University, media training in London and of course, got the opportunity to meet the queen. It was an experience of a lifetime.”
A big part of her being awarded the QYL was Farai’s founding of the organisation, Africa Matters in April 2015.
“The Africa Matters Initiative aims to empower young Africans, aged 16 to 30, from all backgrounds to reject and challenge the notion that Africa is poor and corrupt,” said Farai. “We hope to change the narrative by embracing African identity and actively working to change the continent.”
Follow the Facebook page Africa Matters, on Instagram @africamatters2015 or on Twitter @africamatters15 for more information.
She will attend the One Young World Summit in Columbia and will be the only non-German speaking at a seminar at TedX in Frankfurt, Germany.
“I received most of my strength from my mother and grandmother,” admitted Farai. “They lived through the difficult times, and I’ve learnt from them. I also put my achievements down to my resilience, which is another thing, again, my mother and grandmother have instilled in me.”
Farai explained that in the future, she looks to return to South Africa to complete her PhD.
“I want to be an academic, that is what I see for myself in the future. This way my words will carry weight. I’ll be able to influence students and mould the minds of others, hopefully addressing critical challenges.
Read more about what drives this inspirational young woman in this week’s print edition of the South Coast Sun newspaper.
DID YOU KNOW?
Click on the words highlighted in red to read more on this and related topics.
To receive news links via WhatsApp, send an invite to 061-694-6047
The South Coast Sun is also on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest – why not join us there?
Do you have more information pertaining to this story?
Feel free to let us know by commenting on our Facebook page or you can contact our newsroom on 031 903 2341 and speak to a journalist.
(Comments posted on this issue may be used for publication in the Sun)
