At least three young influencers from the Vhembe District received awards during the first annual Gender-Based Violence Tribute Concert and Raising Legends Awards held at Meropa Casino in Polokwane on Saturday, 1 May.
The awards were initiated by the Hope Givers Foundation, a non-profit company that has been at the forefront of fighting gender-based violence with its various initiatives since its inception in 2014.
Raising Legends was launched by the foundation four years ago. The initiative was endorsed and recognised by Brand South Africa in 2019 as the best initiative that positively advocates for a boy child.
Sagwadi Clarance Majoko, a local movie director from Elim who has made six Xitsonga movies over the past 11 months and is the founder of Geomos Films, was awarded first prize in the Sports, Arts and Culture category. "We deal in video adverts and model photography," he said. "I also run Tsonga Chronicles, which is an organisation aimed at making Xitsonga films and Xitsonga documentaries that tell the history of [the] Tsonga people, while also equipping young people with acting skills."
Majoko holds a BA degree in video and film technology from the Cape Peninsula University of Technology.
Billy Mothombeni, a student activist from Ka-Mahonisi in Malamulele, won first place in the category for Advocacy, Leadership and Academia. "I feel encouraged and motivated that there are people who still believe in my leadership, even after my suspension from the SRC at the University of Venda a few months ago," he said.
All first-place winners were awarded a trophy, recognition certificates, personal mentorship, and presidency-award programmes, including the marketing and profiling of their businesses by Raising Legends.
Solva Gabriel Vilankulu, a graphic designer from Xikundu ka-Magomani village, took second place in the Sports, Arts and Culture category. "I thank the Hope Givers Foundation and Raising Legends team for giving me the opportunity to shine," he said. "This award is a great life achievement for me. I'm so excited and so proud of myself. I'm looking forward to doing more great work and helping other people to achieve what I've achieved and more."
A total of 44 young influencers from across the provinces were given awards on this occasion. "The purpose of this initiative is to create a brotherhood and safe space for young boys and men to have conversations of hope through different educational and mentoring programmes," Ms Tsakani Mkhari, founder of the Hope Givers Foundation said.
The foundation had more than 100 nominees between the ages of 11 and 35 years, who have each made a difference of some kind within their communities.
Mkhari stated that the main aim was to create awareness on the importance of grooming, supporting, and embracing a boy child to help reduce criminal activities in communities, schools, and workplaces by building emotionally and intellectually well-rounded youths to become active members, as well as responsible future leaders of society.
"There's a crisis of rising gender-based violence in our country, which has become another pandemic that has to be dealt with, and we strongly believe that to address the issue effectively, one of the things is to develop and empower a boy child to actively balance the gender scale," Mkhari said.
She explained that the foundation's view was that a boy and girl child should co-exist and receive similar attention and support.