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She developed her brand on social media and now relies on it for her livelihood.

This is Mbali Sebapu, who is among the young women who are known as influencers and have profited from the development of brand marketing by amassing a sizable fan base on their social media platforms and luring major brands to collaborate with them.

Sebapu (32) spoke with Vuk’uzenzele about her experiences using social networks to make money in order to inspire other young women who use them.

Bushbuckridge Community Radio in Mpumalanga has given Emelita Nyalungu (33) a chance at a better life.

Nyalungu, who is a news reader and current affairs presenter, started at the station as an intern and gradually worked her way up to her current position.

“I was informed by a security guard who used to work at the gate about the audition at the station. I passed the audition. Even though I did not know radio, I had a golden voice and the drive to help me stand out among others,” she said.

Guardians of orphaned children urged to seek extra funds through SASSA 

Even in the best of times caring for an orphaned child who is eligible for a Child Support Grant as a relative can be costly.

Now, relatives or guardians of orphaned children can apply for a 50% top-up to the grant to ease the financial pressure.

Independent body seeks to address injustices within the legal profession so that all citizens are treated ethically 

Should you be a victim of corrupt lawyers or experience any other form of legal malpractice, you can lodge a complaint with South Africa’s Legal Services Ombudsman.

In 2020, President Cyril Ramaphosa appointed Justice Sirajudien Desai as the Legal Services Ombud in terms of Section 47 of the Legal Practice Act No. 28 of 2014.

Thandiwe Mchunu is tapping into her background as a chemical engineer to turn food waste into compost for her emerging farm.

Born in the agriculturally vibrant village of Mahlongwa, near Umkomaas, in KwaZulu-Natal’s South Coast, Mchunu (38) says her decision to study chemicals was to help marginalised communities, particularly women, to produce food at a cheaper cost.

She believes that everything revolves around chemical engineering, just like agriculture.

Nomalanga Sibinda (21) from Pudumong village, just outside Taung, North West, is a proud graduate who holds a Diploma of Agriculture in Irrigation from Taung College of Agriculture.

Sibinda is one of nine students who were supported through a bursary programme that was started in 2019 by North West Agriculture and Rural Development MEC, Desbo Mohono. The students received financial support to complete their three-year diploma, setting them on the path to become serious agribusiness operators.

More than 500 South African medical students who recently graduated from Cuban universities are expected to help address challenges that continue to plague the country’s health care system.

The 594 South African medical graduates were part of the Nelson Mandela/Fidel Castro Medical Collaboration Programme. The graduation ceremony took place at the University of Pretoria’s Mamelodi campus.

Learners between Grade 8 and 12 should take advantage of the University of Pretoria’s (UP) free online learning content for maths, physical sciences, accounting, life sciences, natural sciences and English.

The team behind UP’s free JuniorTukkie programme saw the outbreak of the coronavirus (COVID-19) as an opportunity to support even more learners with their schoolwork and career choices.

Kutlwano Tshatiwa (17), is taking the South African technology scene by storm with his revolutionary phone application that can help to diagnose pneumonia and skin cancer in a matter of seconds.

Tshatiwa is a matric learner from Gabonewe High School in the North West.

Tshatiwa recently won a gold medal at the International Festival of Engineering Science and Technology that was held in Tunisia. His application ranked in the top 10 projects in the world.

Five years ago, #CodeLikeAGirl was launched to equip young girls with skills and bridge the gender disparity in technology in South Africa.

Sponsored by Vodacom, the initiative encourages young girls to explore Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) careers.

The programme was launched in 2017 in Tembisa, east of Johannesburg, with only 20 girls. Today, Vodacom seeks to train 1 500 young girls in coding this financial year, bringing the total number of girls trained to 4 000.