Joshua Sizwe Mahlangu
Nominee's Province:
Limpopo
Age:
29
Project Name/Description:
Chairperson – Dennilton Educational Movement
Joshua Sizwe Mahlangu is a proud rural boy, education activist and community developer. In 2017, Mahlangu founded the Dennilton Educational Movement to bridge the information gap in disadvantaged areas. “What drives my passion for education is my past and how I left Dennilton to go to university. It was not an easy journey. The struggle to have access to the internet, the lack of role models in my community, how learners were treated by some teachers, teenage pregnancy, and absenteeism,” he shares. Dennilton Educational Movement is a non-profit organisation (NPO) devoted to making a change in the lives of young people in Dennilton and South Africa as a whole. Its main objective is to create safe, educated and productive communities. The NPO focuses on various campaigns aimed at the community of Dennilton. Mahlangu believes that South Africa is failing too many of its young people in terms of education. “The current government is failing to address the system's disparities and underperformance. As a result, many schools have deteriorating infrastructure, overcrowded classrooms and low academic performance. Apartheid's political and economic actions still impact schools and communities today. In South Africa, a child's school experience is largely influenced by their birthplace, socioeconomic status, and race,” he expresses.
