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Building a better tomorrow for students in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
On May 15th Sigma Technology, Star for Life and Mmemezi High School celebrated the launch of a long-term partnership in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The goal is to help South African scholars follow their dreams and get access to a better education.
Star for Life is an educational program aimed to strengthen the self-esteem of young students in South Africa and Namibia and encourage them to live a healthy life, realizing their dreams. The project currently covers over 67 schools in different regions of South Africa and has touched the lives of over 300,000 learners and their families since 2006.
Sigma Technology consistently contributes to a sustainable future by supporting innovation and development through education within different programs in Sweden, Hungary, China, and Ukraine. Last year, the company became an active partner in the Star for Life project by taking responsibility of Mmemezi High School in South Africa.
The KwaZulu-Natal province is one of the poorest regions of South Africa, where the spread of HIV/AIDS is extremely wide. Over 15% of the population aged 15-24 is HIV positive. Building higher self-esteem, more positive attitudes towards life and education and HIV literacy is especially important here.
On May 15th, Carl Vikingsson, Sigma Technology CEO, and two employees, Alixander Ansari and Malin Andersson, visited the school to meet with the school and discuss the roadmap for further partnership.
The joyful event started with the traditional Zulu dances and songs from the learners and was followed by short presentations from the Sigma Technology representatives.
“We were excited to see so many talented students at Mmemezi High School. We are proud to be a part of the project, aimed to help the learners of South Africa build a foundation for a better tomorrow and realize their dreams,” shares Carl Vikingsson. “Our objective is to support the school in providing a unique level of education and sponsor the most promising students, enabling them to access higher education.”
Alixander Ansari, Test Leader, and Malin Andersson, Project Manager, will be Star for Life Ambassadors from Sigma Technology and will provide assistance to the school throughout the year. They will also act as spokespersons for the Star for Life project in the company:
“Seeing the differences of the schools in South Africa and Sweden first hand was an unforgettable and eye-opening experience,” says Alixander. “We have high hopes that our initiative to sponsor Mmemezi High School will not only increase the quality of the education, but also the level of engagement and experience of the students, especially when it comes to using modern technology as tools for learning and communicating. However, there is still much to be done and many ways we can assist them further in other areas. It is therefore imperative that we engage as many people as possible in activities to find more solutions and initiatives we can take in addition to our financial support.”
“We are honored to be a part of such an important project and are looking forward to cooperating with learners, teachers and the Star for Life representatives to find the most fruitful way forward. We will also help raise awareness within our company and others, to support ways for more learners to realize their dreams and goals,” adds Malin.
For more information, visit sigmatechnology.se/star-life
More photos from the event are available on our Facebook page.
