#LeadGirls2School Phenomenal Women Profiles: Samkeliso Tshuma

We have often heard people joke that “being Zimbabwean is an extreme sport” and that gives us chills- because it is absolutely true. You unfortunately do not get to decide if you are up for this high risk lifestyle. It comes packaged within your nationality. Growing up in a country where education has always been a point of pride, the notion that ‘education is the key to success’ was like oxygen to any student. Our conviction was that with just enough patience, commitment and hard work, a degree or diploma would land us a decent livelihood. It made sense, but only until we started struggling to make sense of the unemployment rate; the thousands of graduates that have had to find alternative sources of income because the economy does not seem to have plans for them.

It does not seem so simple anymore, the notion on the streets is disputing the capacity of education to ensure decent livelihoods for our young people. And if young people themselves are questioning education, it scares us so much what the parents, hard-hit by inflation, dry rainy seasons and many other challenges of the day, are thinking of the investment put towards the education of the children that now sell airtime on the streets. It is our collective responsibility to prove to ourselves and others around us that the effectiveness of our education in securing us a better future should never be measured against the discouraging context of our nation’s politics and economy. Education, formal or informal, equips us with skills and knowledge that enables us thrive. The right kind of education evolves when the economy spirals down. It challenges innovation, creativity and adaptation.

Young girls need role models whose journeys they can relate to, whose resilience they can be inspired by and whose courage they can find strength in. These are the women that will reinstate the confidence of these girls in the brightness of their future and the role of education in it. And if through these women these girls are able to secure the financial support to pull through school, then we as a society can rest assured that our young women and girls will be empowered to learn, about themselves, others around them, their environment and the kind of skills and knowledge that enables them to influence positive change in their communities and their country. Girls have been for years vulnerable, worse so when they are not educated. As society seeks to develop, young girls must be supported to pursue their education with as much ease as can be afforded, because they have a crucial role in defining and building the Zimbabwe we all envision.

#LeadGirls2School is therefore born out of the persuasion that IF young women and girls are financially supported to stay in school AND mentored by the stories of role models whose journey they can relate to, THEN young girls will reaffirm their confidence in education as a tool for success BECAUSE the practicality of women existing in the same economy as themselves acting as role models will challenge a mind-set change around what education can do for anyone who decides to be innovative and creative enough to manoeuvre the various challenges that come with being Zimbabwean.

It is within that spirit that we launched our Phenomenal Women Profiles with a young Bulawayo born Queen, Samkeliso Tshuma. We have seen her efforts to assist young girls with essentials for school, and just skills development that they would not otherwise access in their public schools. We have seen her develop into a courageous speaker constantly inspiring others to what she has called the ‘Winners Circle’ because she is winner and envisions the same for others. When we shared her story on our social media platforms today, a number of people came forward committing to the cause and pledging financial support towards the school fees fundraiser. Some of these people are strangers to us, but they bought into our vision because strong like Samkeliso are living testimonies that girls can be and are winners.

Samkeliso shared that the biggest lesson for her has been life. For her, it did not matter so much that she went to good high schools, and studied her Bachelors in South Africa and her Master in Australia, but rather, what life taught her. She believes that there is need for society to not stop at telling young girls that education is the key to success, but rather that the experiences bring to test our ability to transfer skills and knowledge into survival. It is an error that society confines education to formal academic institutions, without acknowledging the ability of an informal environment and the experiences of self-discovery that are not offered in formal education. The kind of education that truly enables one to thrive is one that combines the different avenues of the learning process. Part of that process involves having young girls identify women that they look up to and asking them to share the challenges they faced in order for them to prepare themselves to not fall into the same traps and to overcome. Samkeliso says she has learnt through her mistakes and despite having explored many business ventures ad failing, the lessons remain valuable because they built her into the woman that she is today. She strongly recommends that girls be taught about the challenges that exist outside the four walls of the classroom as it better equips them to thrive after they graduate from school.

As we wrap up a story that we truly loved telling, we want reiterate Samkeliso’s words that:

“Our responsibility is to teach and inspire girls to dare and win!” #LeadGirls2School is about inspiring rural girls to dare, because only then can they win.

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Author: MantateMlotshwa