By Buziwe Nocuze
- Sibonisile Mlambo, an unemployed graduate from Mangweni village, uses WhatsApp and a R35 weekly Wi-Fi voucher to run her application service.
- NSFAS says it runs rural outreach programmes, but its official backup for students without internet is Thusong Centres, which have a history of decline in OR Tambo.
Sibonisile Mlambo finished her degree and could not find work. So she built something with what she had: a laptop, a weekly Wi-Fi voucher and a WhatsApp number.
From her home in Mangweni village outside Ngqeleni, she now helps matric learners and students apply to universities, colleges and bursaries. She charges R10 for a university application. R30 for postgraduate and college applications. R50 for bursaries.
She started the business because nobody helped her when she needed it most.
“I don’t want the Grade 12 learners to struggle like me,” she said.
Mlambo studied towards a Bachelor of Science degree in Geography and Environmental Sciences. When she was in matric, she says, there was no one in the village to guide learners through applications. She has heard of students who took a gap year simply because they could not afford data to apply.
“I have heard that people took a gap year because they couldn’t afford data to apply,” she said.
Most of her work runs through WhatsApp. Clients send their documents, she handles the process, and they communicate through the same channel. She also helps people who live close enough to see her in person.
The R35 Wi-Fi voucher she buys each week is not a luxury. It is the business.
“We buy a Wi-Fi voucher for R35 a week. It really helps because most university applications are online,” she said.
NSFAS says it runs outreach programmes targeting rural and township communities. For students without internet access, the scheme points people to Thusong Centres and National Youth Development Agency offices. In OR Tambo, the district where Ngqeleni sits, those centres have a documented history of decline. A business case compiled for the Eastern Cape Transport Department found that a pilot Thusong Centre near Port St Johns had become largely non-functional after an initially successful start.
Mlambo says she enjoys running her own business more than spending money chasing jobs that are not coming.
“I have been looking for a job with no luck, so instead of stressing about that, I decided to start a business assisting those who are applying to universities,” she said.
She hopes it grows into a non-governmental organisation one day. But even if she finds work, she says she is not walking away from it.
“Even if I find a job, I won’t stop this business because it is something I am passionate about,” she said.
Pictured above: Sibonisile Mlambo helps young people apply to universities from her home in Ngqeleni.
Image source:Supplied
