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03 April 2019 | Story Xolisa Mnukwa | Photo Vhugala Nthakheni
Uhuru Qwaqwa Arrival
The #UFSWalkToUhuru team arrives at the UFS Qwaqwa Campus on Friday 22 March.

The University of the Free State (UFS) Division of Student Affairs, in collaboration with the UFS Office for International Affairs, have joined hands to drive a fundraising and student-accessibility initiative dubbed, ‘The Walk to Uhuru’ (#UFSWalktoUhuru), which is aimed at raising funds and advocating for the educational rights of the less privileged. 

The project aims to raise funds in excess of R2 million from the public and stakeholders affiliated with the UFS (Kovsie staff and students). The project derives from the 2018/2019 UFS Institutional Student Representative Council (ISRC) mandate ‘Students Must Graduate’. The ISRC mandate aims to source funding opportunities for UFS students to register, and to complete their studies across all three campuses in 2020 and beyond.

The first leg of the project, a 350 km walk from the Bloemfontein to the Qwaqwa Campus, has already taken place and concluded on Friday, 22 March 2019 as planned. The #UFSWalkToUhuru team successfully completed the first leg of their journey to academic freedom for financially disadvantaged students at the UFS. The Uhuru team is now focusing its attention on the second leg and is determined to take on Mount Kilimanjaro (Uhuru) from 20 June to 20 July 2019.

The team sat down for a debriefing session to unpack the overall experience and result of the first half of the initiative, and they all agreed that the walk to Qwaqwa was an enlightening experience. It was a walk that comprised learning opportunities, team building, and goal crushing.

According to Rethabile Motseki, member of the #UFSWalkToUhuru team, the walk to Qwaqwa made a significant impact on the project, as the university community is now aware of the significant goals that the team is trying to accomplish. The team has also resumed their fitness-training programme to ensure that they are ready to take on the Uhuru climb in June.

A media briefing will take place shortly (date to be confirmed) to detail the ongoing fundraising initiatives rolled out by the #UFSWalkToUhuru team.  We implore you, and the nation as a whole, to help establish a better future for disadvantaged UFS students by donating to the initiative.

Students, staff, and the public can support the cause and make contributions/donations to the initiative by visiting the UFS Walk to Uhuru #givengain account page.

For more information, contact UFS SRC President, Sonwabile Dwaba, on DwabaSJ@ufs.ac.za  or Rethabile Motseki on MotsekiR@ufs.ac.za  

Dr Martin Mandew, Qwaqwa Campus Principal
Dr Martin Mandew, Qwaqwa Campus Principal
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News Archive

Heritage translates into fashion
2016-09-13

Description: Centre for Africa Studies Tags: Centre for Africa Studies

Vuyo Mbutho, winner of the best dressed
traditional wear, and Palesa Mokubung,
acclaimed fashion designer.
Photo: Siobhan Canavan

There is no such thing as overnight success. You need to earn your way to the top through hard work, which is exactly what critically acclaimed fashion designer Palesa Mokubung did.

During the 2016 Heritage Day lecture hosted by the Centre for Africa Studies, entrepreneur, award winner and fashion visionary Mokubung told how she had begun her career with the label Stoned Cherrie. Kroonstad-born Mokubung then formed her own label in 2004 called Mantsho, which is Sesotho for “brutally black”.

A true Mantsho garment can be identified by three elements that describe Mokubung’s knowledge of her craft, namely its confident and effortless silhouette, structure and quirkiness. “I was taught to express myself from a very young age and my job is to give people life through my clothes,” she says.

Under the management and creative leadership of Mokubung, Mantsho has gone on to travel to places such as Greece, India, New York, Jamaica, Nigeria, Botswana, and Senegal showcasing its designs.

Mokubung says she does not look far for inspiration because she lives in such exciting times. “Sometimes the fabrics talk to you and you should listen to them.”

This confident, straight talker with her high standards says that all aspiring fashion designers need to earn their way to the top. “You get over it by getting over it, and by working through it.”

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