SHE-BOBO SHINES AT MACE AWARDS

BY HARRIET BOX

THE CRITICAL ROLE OF SHE-BOBO AT UWC in community development was further confirmed when the initiative was recognised at this year’s Marketing, Advancement, Communication in Education (MACE) excellence awards.

SHE-BOBO AT UWC, a league started by the University of the Western Cape (UWC) last year for girls under eight and under 10, received the bronze award in the category of campaigns: community and social responsibility. It was one of the two accolades that UWC’s Department for Institutional Advancement received at the ceremony. The team also won the prestigious Gold Award of Excellence for its first-of-its-kind in South Africa university TV magazine, UWC On Air. This win was in the Media: Audio, Visual and Audio Visual category.

THE UNIVERSITY HOSTED THE TWO-DAY CONFERENCE and AGM on campus in November. The MACE Excellence Awards recognise outstanding performance among practitioners in marketing, advancement and communication in the higher education sector. A record of 255 entries were submitted, with 153 awards conferred to 17 South African universities and TVET colleges.

SHE-BOBO WAS BORN from the realisation that there are only so many opportunities for girls younger than 10 to participate in competitive soccer, hampering their grassroots development. The excitement and joy among players, coaches, parents, sports administrators and spectators said it all when the event kicked off last year. She-Bobo filled a desperately needed void in a girl child’s development. From the Atlantic Seaboard suburb of Camps Bay to the temporary settlement of Blikkiesdorp, about 280 young girls from 14 clubs in Cape Town converged at UWC Sports Stadium to participate.

AS ONE UNIVERSITY LEADER POINTED OUT, it was not just about children playing football, but about introducing kids to UWC and allowing them to use football to get into the university and get their degrees.

GASANT ABARDER, who conceptualised She-Bobo at UWC, said: “I have been involved in girls’ soccer for a while, and there weren’t any platforms for young girls under 10 to play regular football. As a university that has produced several top players like Thembi Kgatlana for Banyana Banyana, it made sense that UWC also looked after developing the grassroots women’s game while engaging with diverse communities and exposing young girls to university life.”

DIRECTOR FOR THE DEPARTMENT FOR INSTITUTIONAL ADVANCEMENT, PROFESSOR ANESH SINGH, expressed his delight about the awards: “I am particularly impressed by this achievement since it is the first time we have entered in many years. I am proud of what Institutional Advancement has accomplished. We are truly gelling as a team and working like a well-oiled machine. Thank you to the team for their collaborative spirit and willingness to always go that extra mile.”