Komani-born young
businessman Masonwabe Fuma is making waves in Gauteng after he received the
Sunday World Unsung Hero Award, which recognises the top 100 young people across
the country who are not afraid to dream and act.
The award covers a
range of categories, including youth in business, sports, arts and culture and
academia and education among others.
Fuma is a global business speaker and
founder of many businesses and foundations, which include a youth development
driven foundation.
“I am the co-founder and executive chairman of Mentorship
Foundation Africa, a youth platform that aims to create intergenerational
dialogues among the youth of Africa on key pertinent issues. The organisation
aims to foster mentorship and robust debates around youth social ills,” he
said.
Fuma went to Stepping
Stone Junior School (SSJS) and later Queen’s
College Boys High School in Komani.
In 2019, he said, SSJS introduced the Masonwabe Fuma Excellence Award, which is awarded to
a top performing and all rounded grade 7 learner each year. The award has had
two recipients to date and is necessary as it encourages young people to
aspire towards excellence at a tender age, he said.
Fuma said
while South Africa was faced with challenges including COVID-19 and youth
unemployment, which stands at 74%, young people still had a role to put
pressing issues on the national agenda and get involved in bringing solutions to the table.
Fuma has a BTech
Degree in Marketing from the University of Johannesburg.
He is currently doing Business Administration and a postgraduate Diploma in Business
Administration at the Wits Business School, Fuma said.
“I am working on
building a centre for youth and community development named Sakhulutsha eAfrika, to be based in the Chris Hani District Municipal area covering youth in Ngcobo,
Cofimvaba and Cala, Lady frere and Komani,” he said.
“Social
entrepreneurship is the ability to identify societal challenges and address them
in the form of business establishment. The young person in the Chris Hani
District Municipal area today who wishes to explore their entrepreneurial
spirit has an obligation. They need to carefully study their community and
identify what it is that their community is struggling with and respond
with a business model.”
Fuma said that if he,
coming from a small town of Komani, can compete among the best in the world and
come out tops – this is clear indication there is talent in the district.
“They
have more potential that they could possibly imagine. They too are worthy and
capable,” Fuma said.
