Publisher

Faced with the stark realities of unemployment and poverty, a group of six young individuals—five women and one man—from Ngqamakwe in the Eastern Cape took matters into their own hands. 

United in their resolve to improve their circumstances, they approached their local chief for arable land in 2014, who granted them a five-hectare farm.

A young man from Mpumalanga who quit his job as a researcher to take on full-time farming says he couldn’t be prouder that he’s playing a role in feeding the nation. 

Bongani Zulu runs Rise Ndabezitha Supply and Projects in the rural area of Elukwatini, where he was born. 

A small cooperative in Limpopo is demonstrating that agriculture can be a beacon of hope amid economic hardship. Founded just a year ago, the cooperative is already transforming lives in Eldorado Village by creating jobs and boosting local food security. 

The recent catastrophic floods in Libya are a stark reminder of the extreme vulnerability of developing economy countries to the effects of an ever-changing climate.

Many other countries on the African continent are just as vulnerable. Despite carrying the least responsibility for global warming, Africa is warming faster than the rest of the world.

It is important for South African students to partake in entrepreneurial initiatives and opportunities made available to them so that they can be empowered to own businesses. 

Recently, Vuk’uzenzele Newspaper held a dialogue with youth in Kimberly in the Northern Cape through its Vuk Talks initiative, in partnership with the Sol Plaatje University (SPU) as part of their annual Student Entrepreneur Week.

A Pretoria-based start-up is making a tangible impact in South Africa's green economy by transforming waste cooking oil into valuable biofuel.

Although South Africa may not be as advanced as many developed countries in the green economy space, entrepreneurs such as Mahlatse Mamaila (32) are helping to steer the country into a cleaner future.

Letter:

Dear Vuk’uzenzele

My name is Oupa Nakana from Limpopo, I am 28-years old.

I run a nursery project in my community which has created five jobs for locals.

We would like our project to grow, we would like to plant more fruit trees and flowers. Please can you advise us on how we can grow our business and funding opportunities.

Kind Regards

Oupa Nakana

Reply

Dear Oupa

Thank you for your letter.

A young Limpopo man who never had access to information growing up is making every effort to prevent a similar fate for young people in his area. 

Twenty-seven-year-old Satsope George Makola of Bakoneng village in Limpopo has earned himself hero status in his community for making quality education accessible to learners within the Makhuduthamaga Local Municipality. Makola is the founder of Lesedi Institute of Education and Development (LIED), an online learning hub he established in 2021 to help learners in his community with digital learning material and online classes.