International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) deputy minister, Candith Mashego-Dlamini, has thanked the foreign diplomatic mission that participated in the public participation programme she led in Mthatha recently at Cibini Junior Secondary School.
The school is located at Nqwathi Village within the King Sabata Dalindyebo Local Municipality.
The foreign diplomats donated a variety of goods to the school, including computer tablets, stationery, sports equipment, and water bottles.
The People’s Republic of China pledged an amount of R100 000 towards the building of the school kitchen.
School principal, Sandile Nowalaza, said that the school engaged former students who helped with writing letters requesting donations to address the school’s inadequate infrastructure, which eventually caught the attention of Mashego-Dlamini.
Some of the facilities the school desperately needs, according to Nowalaza, are an administration block for the staff and a principal’s office.
“After enduring the poor school infrastructure, we decided to do something about it. We had engagements with former students at the school, for them to come up with proposals on what to do to alleviate the situation.”
“We then started writing letters to many government departments and non-governmental organisations, asking for donations to address the poor infrastructure of our school. We achieved a breakthrough when one of the letters reached the office of deputy minister, Mashego-Dlamini, who helped mobilise the items we have received,” said Nowalaza.
The diplomats further committed to helping the school with funds for the construction of the administration block, sports kit, and the installation of smart boards in the classrooms.
“The ambassadors, high commissioners as well as senior diplomats present with us here, have demonstrated that they are good friends of South Africa, and that they align themselves to our focus on the value of education, especially in rural schools.
“We cannot thank them enough for their kindness and friendship,” said Mashego-Dlamini.
Mashego-Dlamini’s visit to Mthatha formed part of a series of public participation events conducted by the Department of International Relations and Co-operation across the country, pursuant to government’s commitment to working directly with communities in addressing some of the country’s challenges.
Several foreign diplomatic missions were represented by their ambassadors, high commissioners and senior officials during the outreach.
These included the missions of the People’s Republic of China, Republic of Korea, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Singapore, Thailand, Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia, Jamaica, Ethiopia, Burundi and Zambia.
