Fast-tracking financial support for students
Fast-tracking financial support for students
Shaking hands after signing the MOU: Professor Gordon Zide, VUT’s Vice-Chancellor & Principal with the Liquid Telecom’s Chief Corporate Service Officer (CCSO), Mr Calvin Theko
Puleng Maphisa
Every year, South Africa experiences many university dropouts which are often caused by the lack of financial support. The Vaal University of Technology (VUT) has created a trusted mutual relationship by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Liquid Telecom South Africa in order to address this tragedy.
Liquid Telecom South Africa is a leading communication services and solutions provider across 13 countries in Eastern, central and Southern Africa that serves carrier, enterprise and retail customers with high-speed, reliable connectivity and digital service.
It brought its reliability to VUT by providing bursaries to 10 Information Technology B-Tech students to a total value of R470 000 In 2017 and believes that during the year 2018 there is a possibility of an increase in order to assist more students to finish their studies.
For students like Ms Promise Mabuse, being a bursary holder has been a life-changer. Ms Mabuse was not able to pay her debts and was fast losing hope when Liquid Telecom appeared as a “guardian angel that wiped her sorrow away”.
Bursary holder: Ms Promise Mabuse together with VUT and Liquid Telecom delegates
“I still can’t believe it, when I think it through, Liquid Telecom has really changed my life, giving me the freedom from debt and an opportunity to pursue my studies even further,” she said.
Liquid Telecom’s Chief Corporate Service Officer (CCSO), Mr Calvin Theko mentioned that it is their responsibility to ensure that students from disadvantaged backgrounds will benefit and have their lives positively changed.
VUT Vice-Chancellor and Principal Professor Gordon Zide showed his gratitude when he said: “This partnership has come at a very appropriate time where we need support; we decided to go out on a very robust campaign of adopt-and-champion a student. Our focus is education and Liquid Telecom has assisted us by producing more employable graduates.”
The 10 student bursary holders will graduate during the April graduations this year.