Driven to mentor others
After graduating from the University of Cape Town, Panduleni Nghipandulwa has devoted his time to making a difference in the lives of the Namibian youth by starting a mentorship programme that targets learners and students from different educational institutions.
Tunohole Mungoba
“Ever since I was a child, I have always wanted to make a difference in the lives of others. I was raised by a single mother who is a very generous and giving person. One of the most important ideas she instilled in me was that as humans, we have a spiritual responsibility to make a difference in the lives of others,” says 25-year-old.
A graduate from the University of Cape Town, in 2017 Nghipandulwa became involved in various community development projects to gain experience. “I helped arrange workshops, gave presentations and spoke at various public platforms to address issues faced by Namibians on a daily basis. As time progressed, I became more involved with the schools and started doing motivational speeches to encourage learners to strive to become the best they can be,” he says. “The recent grade 10s and 12s national examination results made me realize that many learners are struggling in school and need extra tutoring. It was there and then when I made the decision to assist the youth in achieving greater educational outcomes.”
A year later, he realised that the impact his talks were making in the community and he decided to establish the Youth Development and Mentorship Program. The program has two main goals. The first objective is to spread the message of hard work, discipline and leadership to 50 000 young Namibians. I intend on visiting various high schools around the country to give life coaching and inspire the students from grade 8 to 12. The second objective is to mentor at least 100 grade 10 and 12 learners who are currently struggling in school,” he adds. “I have realized that most of the disadvantaged students cannot afford to hire private tutors. The aim of this initiative is to provide this service for free, in order to give all learners an equal chance at succeeding in life.”
Nghipandulwa believes that their mentorship is crucial in today's capitalistic world as “everyone is out there is thinking of the next best way that they can get more money, but not many people take the time to think about the well-being of others.” In addition to this, he says a contributing factor to learners’ poor grades at the end of the year is due to the fact that realized that learners who come from underprivileged do not have the funds for extra lessons. “We aim to fill that void and tutor our fellow brothers and sisters for free.”
So what has the program achieved so far? “We have already given some life coaching and guidance to around 2000 different scholars at Jan Mohr Secondary School, Ella du Plessis High School, Rocky Crest High School and Amazing Kids Private School. “Soon I will be giving a presentation at Windhoek High School, Academia, St. Pauls Private College, Windhoek Gymnasium, Jan Jonker Afrikaner High School and other schools.”
At the moment, the Youth Development and Mentorship Program have ten mentors who are all working on a voluntary contract from the ages of 20 to 29 years. “One of the challenges has been finding more people to join this initiative. We are looking forward to welcoming more passionate individuals who are eager to make a difference in the lives of others. To volunteer, the only requirement is that the individual must have passed the national grade 12 exams,” he says.
Fast facts about the Youth Development and Mentorship Program
1. The program is run by young people all under the age of 30.
2. So far, Panduleni has given life coaching to over 2000 learners.
3. The initiative caters for all high school subjects.
4. They also teach learners about the Power of the Mind.
5. Their whole philosophy is based on having Faith in a Higher Power.
6. This year, their goal is to visit schools from all 13 regions in the country.
7. The program aims to build young leaders with character and self-discipline.
8. Anyone who has passed grade 12 qualifies to be a mentor.
9. Volunteers can use the work they have done for the program as experience on their CVs.
10. Panduleni did a triple major at the University of Cape Town in Political Science, Philosophy and International Relations.
“Ever since I was a child, I have always wanted to make a difference in the lives of others. I was raised by a single mother who is a very generous and giving person. One of the most important ideas she instilled in me was that as humans, we have a spiritual responsibility to make a difference in the lives of others,” says 25-year-old.
A graduate from the University of Cape Town, in 2017 Nghipandulwa became involved in various community development projects to gain experience. “I helped arrange workshops, gave presentations and spoke at various public platforms to address issues faced by Namibians on a daily basis. As time progressed, I became more involved with the schools and started doing motivational speeches to encourage learners to strive to become the best they can be,” he says. “The recent grade 10s and 12s national examination results made me realize that many learners are struggling in school and need extra tutoring. It was there and then when I made the decision to assist the youth in achieving greater educational outcomes.”
A year later, he realised that the impact his talks were making in the community and he decided to establish the Youth Development and Mentorship Program. The program has two main goals. The first objective is to spread the message of hard work, discipline and leadership to 50 000 young Namibians. I intend on visiting various high schools around the country to give life coaching and inspire the students from grade 8 to 12. The second objective is to mentor at least 100 grade 10 and 12 learners who are currently struggling in school,” he adds. “I have realized that most of the disadvantaged students cannot afford to hire private tutors. The aim of this initiative is to provide this service for free, in order to give all learners an equal chance at succeeding in life.”
Nghipandulwa believes that their mentorship is crucial in today's capitalistic world as “everyone is out there is thinking of the next best way that they can get more money, but not many people take the time to think about the well-being of others.” In addition to this, he says a contributing factor to learners’ poor grades at the end of the year is due to the fact that realized that learners who come from underprivileged do not have the funds for extra lessons. “We aim to fill that void and tutor our fellow brothers and sisters for free.”
So what has the program achieved so far? “We have already given some life coaching and guidance to around 2000 different scholars at Jan Mohr Secondary School, Ella du Plessis High School, Rocky Crest High School and Amazing Kids Private School. “Soon I will be giving a presentation at Windhoek High School, Academia, St. Pauls Private College, Windhoek Gymnasium, Jan Jonker Afrikaner High School and other schools.”
At the moment, the Youth Development and Mentorship Program have ten mentors who are all working on a voluntary contract from the ages of 20 to 29 years. “One of the challenges has been finding more people to join this initiative. We are looking forward to welcoming more passionate individuals who are eager to make a difference in the lives of others. To volunteer, the only requirement is that the individual must have passed the national grade 12 exams,” he says.
Fast facts about the Youth Development and Mentorship Program
1. The program is run by young people all under the age of 30.
2. So far, Panduleni has given life coaching to over 2000 learners.
3. The initiative caters for all high school subjects.
4. They also teach learners about the Power of the Mind.
5. Their whole philosophy is based on having Faith in a Higher Power.
6. This year, their goal is to visit schools from all 13 regions in the country.
7. The program aims to build young leaders with character and self-discipline.
8. Anyone who has passed grade 12 qualifies to be a mentor.
9. Volunteers can use the work they have done for the program as experience on their CVs.
10. Panduleni did a triple major at the University of Cape Town in Political Science, Philosophy and International Relations.
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