Nasizo Mndende

Community Youth Heroes

Nominee's Province:
Eastern Cape

Age:
27

Project Name/Description:
Inkciyo Eastern Cape

More info:
https://www.facebook.com/nasizo.mndende

Nasizo Mndende, who hails from Ntlonyana village, Elliotdale, Eastern Cape, is at the forefront of the fight to uphold Xhosa cultural traditions as well as groom a generation of youngsters who are morally upright and who succeed in life through making the right choices from an early age. For the past six years Mndende has been running Inkciyo Eastern Cape, an organisation that encourages youngsters, both boys and girls, from rural areas to take pride in their cultural heritage and abstain from harmful practices such as sex, which leads to a scourge of teen pregnancies, and alcohol abuse. The organisation hosts camps where various activities, such as art and cultural events, including career guidance talks, leadership sessions take place. The idea is to ensure that these rural youngsters could shine bright despite their background. Mndende, who holds a Bachelor of Social Work degree from the University of Fort Hare, says the programme has more than 300 members. (Query: is she running the NPO full-time or does she work elsewhere? Where in the EC is the organisation based?) This year, the Eastern Cape Provincial Arts and Culture Council has sponsored the organisation with a laptop, mattresses and other necessary equipment. “We still need more funding to reach as many parts of the province as possible,” says Mndende.