The plea for action began as a response to overcrowding and limited access in the local secondary school. It quickly grew into a newly established, thriving secondary school creating meaningful opportunities for young people in KwaMnqobokazi. Thanks to the incredible and ongoing support of the Massenet Family Foundation, this community-led vision once begun, has expanded year after year, creating space for learners to grow, achieve and shape their futures.
Historically, the community of Mnqobokazi has relied on one secondary school, Kwa Giba School, to serve its learners. By 2018 the school had five feeder primary schools from the expanding Mnqobokai community, generating an average of 370 school leavers every year, resulting in significant overcrowding.
The principal of one of those Primary Schools, Mrs. Zikhali, noted it was common knowledge that the area lacked high school capacity and were dissatisfied by the impact of overcrowding; “The community which constitutes parents of the learners observed the overcrowding of the only existing high school in the community and the trend of declining matric results over the past three years as the school enrolled over 1,300 learners with limited classrooms and sanitation infrastructure.”
The sense within the community was that overcrowding was leading to school dropouts.
“Dropouts are due to the loss of culture for learning because of school overcrowding which makes it difficult for discipline to be maintained and makes learning unattractive. Particularly vulnerable to drop-out are those learners without parental support motivating them at home.”
The need to act was clear. However, the land space at Kwa Giba High School was not sufficient for further expansion. It was felt that a new school in a different location was required to better serve the growing community.
The dream of Inkosi Zwelakhe Secondary School was born. Led, to become a reality, by a project committee formed within the community.
The group had several meetings with the Department of Education justifying the need for the establishment of a new high school. While engaging with the DoE they also submitted a proposal requesting help from Africa Foundation (now Wild Impact).
The committee also went about working with community leadership to identify suitable land in the community for the school – in terms of both an appropriate amount of space and the ideal location for reducing the journey time to school for many young people in the area.
By 2019, the project committee had land secured and Wild Impact had formed a partnership with Massenet Family Foundation; a family passionate about working with a community to ensure fair access to quality education. The Massenet Family Foundation committed to working with the community and DoE and provide the vital funding needed to accelerate this dream into reality.
This partnership enabled Wild Impact to assist the school committee in writing a letter of intent for funding Phase One, which accompanied the application for the new school with the Department of Education.
In October 2019, the new school was officially approved.
Inkosi Zwelakhe Secondary School was never simply about building classrooms.
From the beginning, it was about creating access, expanding opportunity and responding to a community’s belief that its young people deserved the tools to shape their own futures.
The school which opened to just Grade 8 in 2020, saw those students pass their final Matric exams in 2024, with 100% pass rate. As of 2026 the thriving school for Grade 8-12 consists of 14 classrooms, 2 science laboratories, a kitchen, 15 enviroloo ablutions, a sports court and football pitch all surrounded by a perimeter fence.
Today, those futures are taking shape in laboratories, on sports fields, in classrooms and in the ambitions of learners given the opportunity to prepare for what comes next.
“For me, Inkosi Zwelakhe Ngwane Secondary School has been a dream come true. As a learner who relies on lip reading because I am partially deaf, learning in an overcrowded classroom would have made it incredibly difficult to follow lessons and fully participate. Here, I’ve been able to sit close to my teachers, understand lessons properly, and receive the support and attention I need to thrive. This school gave me more than an education. It gave me a real chance to succeed.”
~Khanyisile Bulethezi~
Wild Impact is a Public Benefit Organisation registered in South Africa. Reg. No.: 930002115