The past few months have been a time of significant transition at Ubuhle Babantwana Educare center in Mfuleni. CHOSA has been partnering with Ubuhle for the past six years and, under the direction of “Mama” Pumla Gigi, it has grown from an ad-hoc day care center to a full-fledged pre-school, serving nearly 200 children in three separate locations.

Earlier this year, Mama Pumla felt inspired to open an early childhood education and afterschool care center in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. While she is missed in Cape Town, we admire her courage and determination to bring new educational opportunities to children who previously had no access to this kind of academic enrichment.

Due to this change, CHOSA staff have been assisting the teachers at Ubuhle with the transition, meeting with them and building stronger supportive relationships. The teachers participated in a training in which they learned more about CHOSA’s vision and mission, and will soon be undergoing basic computer literacy training to help them do their jobs more effectively, and to generally increase their capacity. As growth and change continues to take place at Ubuhle, and as the Center continues its fight to own the land it was built on, CHOSA will continue to walk with Ubuhle’s teachers and staff in solidarity.