Her mother, a single parent who mopped the hallways of a ?width=200&height=235)
New Brighton tuberculosis hospital, raised Nozibele with an audacity to want more for herself than what is possible for children growing up in Port Elizabeth’s townships. Her teachers taught her to think for herself, and Ubuntu Education Fund, a non-profit organisation dedicated to providing vulnerable children with everything they need to realise their potential, empowered Nozibele to reach for her dreams.
Emboldened by the investments so many had made in her, Nozibele became the first in her family to graduate from university. She holds a National Diploma and BTech degree in Marketing, from the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University. She is currently completing her BA Honours degree in Development Studies).
During her third year, she secured a position at Continental Tyre South Africa and began to climb the corporate ladder, travelling to Germany on a prestigious exchange programme and taking on a strategic role in the company’s marketing department. Yet Nozibele, (after attaining a hope that few in her community had ever realised), decided to leave the for-profit industry and return to the organisation that had made so much of her success possible.
As Ubuntu Education Fund’s External Relations Manager, Nozibele now uses her marketing degree to broaden funding sources in support of the cradle to career household stability, health, and education services. She is dedicated to assure that 2,000 vulnerable children have the same opportunities she was fortunate enough to access.
She has played an integral role in making the organisation’s transformative work possible. Nozibele’s commitment to ubuntu, by repaying her debt and transforming the next generation of South Africans, speaks to her profound sense of humanity. It is both humbling and inspiring.
After only 22 months at Ubuntu, she achieved the following:
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Nelson Mandela Business Chamber Top40 under 40 achiever 2015
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Vision4Woman “Beyond The Balance Sheet” Awards nominee (health and welfare)
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2014 and 2015 Ubuntu Education Fund Gala Keynote speaker, London and New York – respectively
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InkuluFreeHeid “Fruit of Democracy award recipient – under category of Community Excellence/Civil Society (2015)
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Penuel Fellowship Community Excellence Award recipient (2015)
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Destiny Magazine Feature:
Article - http://www.destinyconnect.com/2015/06/02/upholding-the-spirit-of-ubuntu-through-education/
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South Africa ambassador in the “Africa for Norway” Radiator Conference (2015)
Nozibele is only one of many other alumni who proudly represents Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University and is a true ambassador for the institution.