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Meet SU’s 2020 Mandela Rhodes Scholars
Author: Corporate Communication/Korporatiewe Kommunikasie [Asiphe Nombewu & Rozanne Engel]
Published: 28/02/2020

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The Mandela Rhodes Foundation has honoured six Stellenbosch University (SU) students to be part of its class of 2020 Mandela Rhodes Scholars.  

Founded by former president Nelson Mandela, the Mandela Rhodes Foundation (MRF) was established to build exceptional leadership capacity in Africa by granting postgraduate students the opportunity to further their studies in their chosen fields.

The MRF does this by means of financial support, by helping them to network with other like-minded student leaders at workshops and by providing them with mentors who are also MRF alumni.

To qualify for this scholarship, students are required to have strong leadership qualities and be committed to the guiding principles, which are education, leadership and entrepreneurship.

Delecia Davids from Delft in Cape Town is one of the six SU students out of 47 leaders from all over the African continent, chosen to be part of the MRF scholars for the year 2020.

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[In the photo: Delecia Davids]

She says receiving the scholarship is a true honour and affirmation of the hard work that she has put into her academic and leadership journey.

Davids is a part-time junior lecturer in the Faculty of Education at SU, where she lectures Natural Sciences and Environmental Education to first year BEd students. Having completed both her undergraduate degree in Education and her honours degree in Educational Development and Democracy, she says it hasn't always been easy.

“I believe that my purpose is to help others discover for themselves what they are meant to be, and this is what will guide my future plans," says Delecia.

The Mandela Rhodes Foundation has also selected Gideon Basson, a postgraduate Law student from SU doing an LLM degree. He is the former Metanoia Residence Prim who has also received awards such as the Rector's Award for Excellent Achievement in Leadership at SU.

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[In the photo: Gideon Basson]

Born in Vredendal in the West Coast, Gideon says being awarded the scholarship marks the start of a deeper responsibility towards the African continent for him.

“I am very grateful that I can be part of a complex legacy and have the opportunity to do my LLM and to find innovative ways to help alleviate our complex problems and help negotiate a future we want," he says.

The third scholar from SU is Phebe Keshinro, from Ekiti State in South Western Nigeria. Phebe says the scholarship represents an open door to opportunities, and she sees it as a platform to achieve her goals for her country and Africa at large.

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[In the photo: Phebe Keshinro]

Keshinro is doing her Masters in Development Finance at the University of Stellenbosch Business School (USB). She has also participated in various research activities resulting in five publications and many more under review.

For Thabani Mtsi, being part of the Mandela Rhodes Class of 2020 has given him a “strong sense of self-efficacy" and an assurance in his capabilities to lead, to inspire, to edify. Mtsi, a Civil Engineering student at SU, has a passion for community engagement and believes in the power of “Ubuntu" throughout South Africa. He hopes to use the scholarship as an opportunity to build on leadership skills and have a positive impact on the continent.

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[In the photo: Thabani Mtsi]

The fifth scholar, Eduard Beukman, also hopes to “contribute meaningfully to the continent". He is currently doing his MPhil in Science and Technology Studies at the Centre for Research on Evaluation, Science and Technology, which focuses on measuring the impact of new and emerging technologies on South African society.

“For me, the Mandela Rhodes Scholarship was a perfect opportunity to continue engaging with my passion for the continent while also being able to pursue my postgraduate studies. With my research, I hope to help develop regulations and policies that can mitigate some of the negative externalities that could potentially come from the Fourth Industrial Revolution," says Beukman.

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[In the photo: Eduard Beukman]

Many of the MRF scholars also hope to build life-long partnerships and connections with each other, which they hope will also serve the continent better.

Masego Mafata, a Journalism student at SU, says that meeting her fellow MRF scholars has increased her “desire to further explore the African continent" and to familiarise herself with lived experiences outside of the ones that she has been exposed to.

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[In the photo: Masego Mafata]

Mafata has served on several outreach committees, as well as on the executive committees of the United Nations Association of South Africa and Amnesty International's SU chapters for 2018/19. She longs for the societal realisation of social justice and cohesion and like the other MRF scholars, she hopes to become a leading change-agent on the African continent.

Read more about the scholars here: https://mandelarhodes.org/the-scholars/view-by-year/2020/

Photos by Verity Fitzgerald.