Following the first successful Siyandisa Foundation Scholarships awarded to 25 deserving Free State learners this year, the Siyandisa Foundation Scholarship Programme is set to expand nationally in 2018 and award scholarships to the top learners from all nine provinces. “In this way the programme aims to reward and grow excellence on a national basis and identify the most talented and deserving learners in our country for further support and mentorship,” remarks Sam Moleko, Chair of Siyandisa Trust and spokesperson for the Siyandisa Foundation.
“In the national enlargement of the Scholarship Programme, a total of 50 grade 12 learners - five from each province and an additional wild card five that are up to the selectors’ discretion, will receive the much sought after Siyandisa Foundation Scholarships in 2018. These learners from across the country will be identified based on their final grade 11 examination results and will be invited in January 2018 to apply for the scholarships. Applications will be reviewed and the final 50 candidates identified, who will receive their Siyandisa Foundation Scholarships at a prestigious gala function in March next year” says Moleko.
Moleko expresses enormous excitement about the expansion of the Siyandisa Foundation Scholarship Programme, stressing its growing relevance in South Africa’s continuous growth and development as a country.
The Siyandisa Foundation was established by Siyandisa Trust, a South African black-owned investment business focused on investing and establishing strategic partnerships with investment partners across a number of industry sectors in South Africa.
“We at Siyandisa Trust believe in our country’s future and invest intentionally for development, growth and empowerment. We truly see ourselves as a partner focused on helping grow South Africa. It is this same vision that has inspired, driven and motivated us to establish the Siyandisa Foundation Scholarship Programme and to now expand its reach to all nine provinces – investing in the leaders and success stories of tomorrow and in this way also contributing to our collective future,” adds Moleko.
The Siyandisa Foundation scholarship offering, will next year provide each of the 50 deserving grade 12 recipients with tablets and data access as a technology platform for learning and interaction. With these tools, recipients gain access to custom high-quality online learning content targeted at matriculation examination preparation. A vital aspect of the scholarship is access to dedicated career counsellors assisting with the vital aspect of career and tertiary study preparation as well as access to personal mentors to assist with many of the soft skills issues learners are faced with. In addition, scholars receive stationery, a financial calculator, power bank, a financial incentive of R1 000 per matriculation distinction achieved and the opportunity to quality for high value bursaries of R50,000 each for their tertiary studies.
“Recipients receive invaluable career counselling and guidance; bursary and university application support; and vital mentorship and life-coaching by top mentors to empower them with the necessary soft skills to excel academically at the end of grade 12, and following that, face the challenges of tertiary studies and establishing meaningful careers,” Moleko points out.
“We at the Siyandisa Foundation are incredibly excited about what this programme can and will achieve, even more so from 2018 when the programme moves to a national level. In our view the timing and focus of the programme is vital to our shared future,” Moleko concludes.