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BY Nkosazana Ngwadla

The lack of adequate resources for young girls who menstruate is a growing problem in South Africa, often, little girls have no choice but to skip school for a whole week every month because they don’t have pads, tampons and pantyliners for when their monthly menstrual cycle comes.

A Kwa-Zulu Natal man who goes by Malume wabashana (an uncle to the children) on Tik Tok works closely with children as he transports them to and from school every day, and his generous heart could not let this keep happening while he sat and did nothing.

READ MORE: “Minister of Menstruation”, Candice Chirwa on plans to help decrease period poverty

So, uMalume regularly buys pads in bulk and hands them out to all his little “nieces” so they no longer have to miss school because of this unfair disadvantage. In his videos on the social media platform, the man seems to have a good, fun relationship with all the children he drives – he makes sure they always have their safety belts on, plays them music they enjoy, and the children all seem to love him.

@malumwabashana

Please help me, which one is good. Ngiyabonga🙏🏽

♬ original sound – Malum’Wabashana

Although some men have expressed their discomfort with a man giving young girls pads, popular menstruation activist and “Minister of Menstruation”, Candice Chirwa gave uMalume wabashane a nod – commending him for his good work and big heart.

“I feel that having MENstrual allies means that men actively need to be involved in ending period poverty. If he’s a male teacher helping to ensure girl children have access to a necessity item, then I’m glad he’s setting the tone that men can be involved,” she wrote on Twitter.

I feel that having MENstrual allies means that men actively need to be involved in ending period poverty. If he’s a male teacher helping to ensure girl children have access to a necessity item, then I’m glad he’s setting the tone that men can be involved. https://t.co/qenF1p0hxZ

— Minister of Menstruation🩸 (@Candice_Chirwa) March 16, 2023

The Fuse – Stories from South Africa also commends the KZN man for his inspiring decision to help, and not pay attention to stereotypes.

BY Nkosazana Ngwadla

Megan Goliath, a Pro Dancer, Performer, Teacher, Choreographer, Self-development Coach, Entrepreneur and all-round amazing woman, has finally made her childhood dream of having a foundation come true.

On 16 March the powerhouse made the exciting announcement of the launch of The Femmove Foundation – a body that is aimed at positively impacting the lives of young women in South Africa. Megan took to Instagram to share the news, “For as long as I can remember, I’ve had a burning passion to empower young women and provide them with the tools and resources they need to succeed. Growing up in South Africa, I’ve seen firsthand the struggles that young women face, from lack of access to education to limited opportunities for leadership and growth,” she wrote.

“That’s why I founded The Femmove Foundation – to provide young women with the support, mentorship, and education they need to thrive. We offer a range of programs and initiatives, from body confidence education to dance and leadership development, all designed to help young women build their self-confidence and achieve their goals,” she continued.

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A post shared by Megan Goliath | ProDance Teacher & Self-development Coach (@femmove_)

Megan defines herself in modern terms, as the quintessential “divine feminine”. She is a woman that has all the answers within; the female who shows up consistently to harness her inner beauty and energy by striving to be the best version of herself. Her ongoing journey to achieving a divine feminine state for her, indelibly linked to her passion – dance. Dance and movement are her form of medium and a powerful vehicle to enhance every facet of her being.

​It started out as a childhood hobby that further evolved over many years into an inner journey of the soul and of self-discovery. “Dance and movement drive me. They energizes me, inspire me, and heal my soul.” She expresses dance as a universal language which has proven over and over that it is the beautiful expression that can ultimately connect us all.

​Because of what it has done for her on a physical, mental, emotional, social and spiritual level, she uses the kinetic energy of dance and movement as a transformative medium to empower women through a broad spectrum of vital lived experiences embedded in her teaching methodology to lay the foundation of a path to a purposeful life.

BY Nkosazana Ngwadla

If you’re a gospel music fanatic, or just looking for music to lift you up this weekend, sensational gospel artist and TV personality, Hlengiwe “Hle” Ntombela has something special just for you!

The talented musician released her much anticipated EP, Take Heart, on 17 March, and let’s just say; it’s an experience, and you have to just listen to it for yourself.

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Take Heart is Hle’s debut project with the international Motown Gospel – a division of Capitol CMG/Universal Music Group, the world’s leading Christian music company and market leader in recorded music, distribution, and music publishing. Motown Gospel’s artist roster has gospel giants such as Tasha Cobbs Leonard, Smokie Norful, Tye Tribbett, Brian Courtney Wilson, Kierra Sheard, The Clark Sisters and more.

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With five songs In Take Heart, your spirit is bound to go through a journey of praise and worship. The first song, You’re the Worthy One, sees Hle’s sincere voice and sheer talent rising up to praise like a sweet, soothing aroma, filling and purifying the air. From then on, the only way is up and forward!

BY Nkosazana Ngwadla

Disney+ South Africa has collaborated with Johannesburg artist Dbongz Mahlati to create a proudly South African mural celebrating the release of the third season of Star Wars: The Mandalorian. The much anticipated original, live-action series from Lucasfilm is now streaming exclusively on Disney+.

Dbongz, a street artist from the West Rand in Johannesburg, Gauteng, is thrilled to have created the mural in Rosebank for the streaming giant.

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READ MORE: Visual artist Masonwabe Ntloko’s first ever painting exhibition “ILISO LO MOYA” was a success

He started participating in street art in 2008 when he first came to the city to pursue his tertiary education. Dbongz then fell in love with the freedom it afforded him, the colours, the huge canvasses in the form of walls, the confidence it instilled in him, and the ability to spread conceptual messages to the masses.

BY Nkosazana Ngwadla

The infamous Amo (played by Kagiso Rathebe) has been released from jail and shook the Scandal! audience! This saw Hlengiwe (played by Nqobile Nunu Khumalo) re-live her most traumatic experiences. Being the great investigative journalist she is, Hlengiwe has no choice but to investigate how Amo really got an early exit from prison.

READ MORE: Amo is back on Scandal! and he has unfinished business with Hlengiwe

I agree with everything she said! The system is flawed because how can her abuser be allowed to go free a year after he was convicted? #etvscandal pic.twitter.com/wEo8OSsdjM

— Scandal! (@etvScandal) March 16, 2023

Sello Sebotsane, who plays the dangerous and corrupt Prosecutor, is known to release SA’s most dangerous criminals back to society for a fee. However, until now he has started to be thoroughly investigated by Hlengiwe which puts him in the spotlight after releasing Amo. Now he comes in to play to stop Hlengiwe from investigating. If investigations don’t stop, he will be forced to play dirty and might end up killing someone… 

Catch Scandal! Mondays – Fridays at 7.30PM on e.tv

BY Nkosazana Ngwadla

Local actress and businesswoman, Omuhle Gela is hosting her famous Mom’s Day Off Luncheon at a secret location in Johannesburg on the first of April 2023, and she’s going bigger and better with for speakers.

The mommy of one carefully selected four amazing women as guest speakers for this year’s first event, and one of them is local businesswoman, dancer, reality TV star and mother of three, Annie Mthembu. “We can’t wait to hear how she juggles being a wife, businesswoman, reality Tv star, being a mommy and remaining in shape,” Omuhle commented.

READ MORE: Omuhle Gela is going all out for her next Mom’s Day Off event in Johannesburg

Annie owns the Annaesthetic Beauty Studio, SA’s Only All Pink Luxury Salon. She has been the CEO of this one stop shop for all beauty needs since 2019. Annaesthetic Beauty Studio is located in Morningside, overlooking Moses Mabhida Stadium and the Indian Ocean. Since March 2021, Mrs. Mthembu has been serving as the Managing Director at WeDo Marketing, a 360 Marketing, Branding and Event Management Agency located in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. She is also a senior partner at Kgolo Daguru Experiential.

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Mrs. Mthembu is one of the main cast members of the first, second and third seasons of the famous The Real Housewives of Durban show on Showmax. RHOD premiered in January 2021 and airs every Friday 7 p.m.

BY Nkosazana Ngwadla

Renowned South African Jazz singer and composer Gloria Bosman has died at 50 years old. The legendary artist’s family released an official statement confirming her passing on social media.

“It is with profound sadness that we share that in the early hours of this morning, we lost the rock of our family; a beloved mother, grandmother, and sister, Gloria Bosman who came to fame for her soulful and soothing voice. After a short illness, she transcended peacefully at her home, surrounded by family. Gloria had devoted her life, not just to her family, but to her music, she was loved and adored by many here in South Africa and beyond its borders. Her fans were part of her large and extended family that she always put her best stage performances for. The details of memorial and burial services will be released in due course. We appeal for your compassion and space during this time of overwhelming grief. We welcome and appreciate your prayers in the difficult days ahead of us.”

Her family and friends will certainly miss her, and so will her fans. Here are 5 things we will miss about the talented Gloria:

1. Her angelic voice

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A post shared by Gloria Bosman (@gloriabosman)

2. Her humorous storytelling

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3. Her impeccable style

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A post shared by Gloria Bosman (@gloriabosman)

4. Her love for good food

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5. Her passion for younger artists

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BY Nkosazana Ngwadla

Award-winning poet and author, Lebohang Masango’s journey in literature has been one for the books (excuse the pun), and we’re totally here for it! The academic recently shared an achievement she’s proud of on her social media accounts – her Master of Arts dissertation received a distinction/First Class, this is the dissertation that became the basis for her latest offering, The Soft Life.

“The First Class for my dissertation is a discovery 4 years late so it changes only a little, but it does give me something to hold onto and maybe smile at, when I would rather, in fact, scream,” she wrote.

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Lebohang Masango earned her Master of Arts degree in Social Anthropology from the University of Witwatersrand, South Africa. She is also the award-winning author of children’s book, Mpumi’s Magic Beads (David Philip, 2018), which is available in all 11 of South Africa’s official languages. The book has been awarded the 2019 South African Literary Award for Children’s Literature, the 2019 Exclusive Books IBBY SA Award for Best Writer and a 2020 gold Pendoring Advertising Award in the Publication Design – Whole Design category.

She has co-authored Grow to Be Great: Awesome African Achievers with Dr Judy Dlamini (Sifiso Publishers, 2020) and Mpumi and Jabu’s Magical Day (David Philip, 2020) with Professor Claudine Storbeck, the Director for the Centre for Deaf Studies at the University of the Witwatersrand. This book was awarded a 2021 Silver Pendoring Advertising Award in the Publication Design – Whole Design category. She has written Nanana Boselesele for Wimpy and Ethnikids’ ‘Our Stories, Your Language’ campaign, co-authored O Šomile, Kolobe Ya Ditšhila for a child protection NGO in 2020 and written The Great Cake Contest as part of the voluntary literacy initiative Book Dash in 2018.

As an Anthropologist, Lebohang is published in Connected Lives: Families, Households, Health and Care in Contemporary South Africa, edited by Nolwazi Mkhwanazi and Lenore Manderson (HSRC Press, 2020) and Anxious Joburg: The Inner Lives of a Global South City edited by Nicky Falkof and Cobus van Staden (Wits University Press, 2020).

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In 2021, the South African Reserve Bank commissioned Lebohang to write “A Purposeful Journey”, a poem for their centenary. She also hosted and performed in the South African government’s official Women’s Day broadcast.  She is published in Years of Fire and Ash: South African Poems of Decolonisation (Jonathan Ball, 2021) edited by Wamuwi Mbao and To Breathe Into Another Voice (Real African Publishers, 2017), a Jazz poetry anthology edited by Myesha Jenkins.

Her poetry, “Ten Thousand Stories” features in MultiChoice/ DStv’s Most Loved Storyteller campaign and has won a gold Mama Africa Award and gold Best Image Promo Award at the Promax Africa Awards (2020). Her poetry also features in Metropolitan’s “Freedom Matters” (2019) video and the Hip Hop song “Endurance” (2015) by Reason alongside the late, HHP. She has read her poetry in South Africa, Zimbabwe and the UK.

Lebohang is a UNICEF Volunteer Program Advocate and an inaugural Zanele Mbeki Fellow in feminist leadership. With her immense passion for children’s literacy, Lebohang regularly hosts storytelling sessions in schools, bookshops, community libraries and virtually, due to the current Covid-19 pandemic. She was voted the second runner-up in Daily Maverick’s Youth Champion category in their Person of the Year Awards 2021. She is currently a PhD candidate.

BY Nkosazana Ngwadla

South Africans know how to hustle. Molefe (played by Motlatsi Mafatshe) is the perfect demonstration of how one must not let others deter them from their dreams. Being motivated by the fact that he has to make money to pay for lobola, he decided it is time to start a business “Molefe’s shoes” in the hopes that it will be an instant success, and he will be able to pay off lobola with ease.

READ MORE: Amo is back on Scandal! and he has unfinished business with Hlengiwe

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But like many things in life, success takes time to build and will always have obstacles along the way. One of these obstacles include one major “shot left” that will throw him completely off his game – Dorothy (played by Brenda Mukwevho) has been lying to him this whole time and she is actually still married in her past life. Molefe is DEVASTATED by this news.

Meanwhile, a beautiful love story between Ona (Nefisa Mkhabela) and Soka (Linda Nxumalo) turns tragic. Ona finds herself fighting for Soka’s love and trust, again, by reassuring her love for him. Ona ensures that she sends Soka a love letter every day until Soka decides to forgive her.

And in actual fact, it did work, until Neo (Thato Dithebe) decides he will write a love letter to Ona expressing all his feelings and speaking Ona’s love language. Neo decides to risk all or nothing for the love of his life and goes in for a kiss with Ona. They end up sharing a long intimate kiss. The big question is, how will Soka take this? Will he even find out?

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Catch House of Zwide every Monday – Friday at 7PM on e.tv

BY Nkosazana Ngwadla

Think back to your younger years in primary school, remember how often you heard the phrase “curiosity killed the cat” when you had questions about something? Children are almost always discouraged from being curious, but imagine if our curiosity was not only encouraged, but supported instead. What if curiosity didn’t actually kill the cat, but made it wiser?

Cape Town woman, Celeste Stewart recalls always being the curious child in school and at home. “I was also quite the entertainer,” she giggles. “I remember putting on shows for my family, and always having a larger-than-life type of personality. But more than anything, I was always asking questions and expressing my curiosity boldly,” she adds.

Which makes sense then, why after many years working in Human Resources, Celeste started her won company and called it Bold Curiosity.

Bold Curiosity is a leadership development consultancy with over 20 years of experience in the field. They understand adult learning and are driven to making an impact by supporting organisations with the right learning solutions. Partnerships are essential to Bold Curiosity as they are a relationship-driven organisation. Their mantra is “meaningful learning experiences” and this is the heart of everything they do.

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Boasting a number of clients under their belt, including big companies such as Media24, Clicks, PSG and many other legendary brands, Celeste’s vision of curiosity not being labeled a negative aspect of learning and thinking is certainly coming to life.

“I believe people have the potential to be absolutely amazing. If I had listened to a teacher at school, I would never have gone to university, never risen to a leadership position and never started my own business. Was that drive always inside of me? Absolutely! But words are incredibly powerful, and I’ve recognised that on my own journey. And so, unlike my high school teacher, I’ve decided to be very deliberate about giving people a sense of hope and excitement through the work I do,” Celeste concluded.

March 14 officially marks International Ask A Question Day, and what better day to encourage curiosity than today! And in the words of this phenomenal businesswoman, Celeste, “The confidence to ask a question begins with you! Give yourself permission to ask those questions you’re keen to explore in the workplace and beyond.”