Acacia Global presents 2023 Leadership Award to Maxwell Funo

Maxwell Funo is the principal at Mkhanyiseli primary school in KTC township situated in Nyanga Cape Town, South Africa. Maxwell has been teaching at the school for 25 years and was promoted to be the principal in July 2021. He received his degree at the University of Cape Town in Education Management and Leadership Development.

Mkhanyiseli primary school dates back to 1950, and its community has been facing the harsh realities of unemployment for years. Maxwell stated that he “strongly believes that the poor background of these learners should not be a determining factor of their destiny.” Maxell has a strong vision for the future of the school and it’s students. He is a tireless advocate to provide them with the resources needed to make their education meaningful and possible.

Mr. Funo is very passionate about e-Learning and recently won a competition sponsored by Microsoft Partners in Learning (MSPiL) in the categories of ‘Collaboration’ and ‘Innovation in a challenging context,' representing South Africa in the Middle East in Morocco.

See this summary for more about Acacia Global’s work in 2023.

Ubuntu is Acacia Global’s guiding principle: “We are because you are, and you are because we are.” Never has this been more true than now, when the Coronavirus pandemic is impacting lives all over the planet.

South Africa has declared a national state of disaster and people are being encouraged to maintain a social distance from each other. Anyone who has visited the townships outside of Cape Town knows how difficult that will be when you often have multiple family members living in one or two rooms.

Last summer, many of our supporters made donations to Nelson Mandela Day to purchase bicycles for a neighborhood watch group to patrol the streets of Guguletu. In this crisis, those bikes are now being used by volunteers to deliver food and medicine to families. Those donations are now giving back in ways that we could never have imagined last summer – not only keeping people safe, but keeping them healthy and fed as well.

Collectively, South Africans and Americans have endured wars, apartheid, racism, 9-11, and the AIDS pandemic. We will get through this crisis…together.

The places we work

South Africa has a population of 55 million people. Approximately 10 percent of these people control 90 percent of the country’s wealth. Despite the country’s reputation as an economic powerhouse on the African continent, fully one-half of all South Africans live in poverty. More than one in four people are unemployed and, in the townships, nearly seven in 10 young people are without a job. The lack of employment and quality education opportunities impacts daily life in the townships. Thousands of black Africans live in informal settlements. There is limited access to clean water and sanitation. Disease, mental health issues, and violent crime are major issues affecting poor communities.

The townships are also home to incredibly dedicated and talented community activists and leaders. The individuals and organizations with whom we partner are unwavering in their determination to improve the lives of the hundreds of thousands of women, men, and children who call townships like Khayelitsha and Guguletu home.

Learn. Earn. Lead. And Listen.

We got involved in South Africa when a pandemic — AIDS — threatened the future of the African continent. Today, two pandemics — COVID-19 and systemic racism — require us to think and act differently. It’s time for us to listen.

 In August 2020, Acacia Global hosted a listening session featuring important voices from the Black community here and in South Africa: Twin Cities actor T. Mychael Rambo and South African activists Vuyiseka Dubula, and Mandla Majola.

The parallels between the U.S. and South Africa are striking, from the impact of COVID-19 on the BIPOC communities to the on-going failure to address the injustices of apartheid and system racism. To donate to our presenter’s causes: Penumbra Theater Next Generation Program and South Africa Projects: AEDC and MCSJ

Please follow this link to hear a recording of the conversation.

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