MMC of Sports, Arts & Culture at Mbombela Local Municipality Khanyi Mhlanga has recently (31 October) celebrated her 34th birthday by donating 34 pairs of shoes and sanitary packages to pupils at Tenteleni Primary School in Kanyamazane.

Mhlanga, who believed that it is important to give back to the community on your birthday rather than receiving gifts, said it brought a lot of joy to see herself landing a helping hand to the school at which she did her primary education.

“I still have vivid memories of my days as a pupil at Tenteleni Primary. When I was about eight and nine- years- old, I used to walk for quite a distance from my grandmother’s house to school.”

“As a community activist, I have over the years volunteered and worked with several leaders including the former Deputy President of the ANCYL Desmond Moela to give back to the less fortunate. Today I am a public representative and still believe that it is important to understand and intervene where possible to address some of the challenges that our communities are facing especially young people,” said Mhlanga.

Her birthday celebration was preceded by a soccer tournament at Kamagugu Stadium on Sunday 30 October. The soccer tournament was also a part of her birthday celebrations.

Mhlanga is of the view that sports can assist to build better communities and address some of the challenges that young people are facing such as substance abuse, mental health issues, temptations to do crime and poor health conditions.

“Sports can be used as a cornerstone of social cohesion. It is through sports that we can teach a boy child that GBV is wrong, and we can groom better young men for a better society. Whilst unemployment remains a challenge countrywide, we need to start small, and support young people interested in business through structured mentorship programmes to improve their chances of success,” said Mhlanga.