When Nyeleti Mthombeni received a call from the City of Johannesburg that she was one of the seven winners of the Teach A Senior Citizen Digital Skills competition, she ended the call quickly thinking it was a prank.
It was only after officials called her a third time that she believed her luck had finally come through.
She joined six other winners on the morning of 11 July 2020 at the Joburg Theatre to receive their prizes from Member of the Mayoral Committee for Community Development Cllr Margaret Arnolds during which all the Covid-19 protocols were observed.
The seven winners, including Mthombeni, received MTN-sponsored tablets worth R2 300 each.
The competition invited young people from across the City to submit videos showing how they taught their grandparent to use digital technology, work their way in the digital space and mainly to keep in touch with their beloved ones using WhatsApp and Twitter, among others.
The rest of the winners are: Zanele Mahloko (Naturena), Nsovo Maluleke (Protea Glen), Karishma Khusal (Lenasia), Rethabile Ntlapati (Vlakfontein), Boikanyo Ramafalo (Tladi) and Sbusiso Gumede (Ivory Park).
When delivering her congratulatory message, which was warmly received, Cllr Arnolds said: “In many years to come you will remember that at the peak of the Covid-19, you sat at the Joburg Theatre and received your first tablets.”
Clr Arnolds further called on other corporates to assist in driving this digital literacy campaign.
Judy Maluleka from the MTN Foundation said: “The foundation is meant to make a difference in vulnerable and needy communities. This we cannot do alone. We need to partner with government and other corporates.”
Library and Information Services Director Nobuntu Mpendulo emphasised the need get on the City website, Facebook pages and share information for better good and personal development.
