Xolane Ndhlovu, Philanthropist On a Mission to Impact Nigerians

The story of Victor Iken, the 39-year-old Nigerian who attempted to go to Europe through Libya but got deported and returned home poorer, trended heavily in the past few weeks. However, it had a sweet ending when he was assisted with N1.6m by Xolane Ndhlovu after the billionaire chairman of DafriBank Digital Limited read his story online
Giving an update on his Instagram page, @xolanendhlovu, the benefactor posted: “After @legit.ng correspondent, Damilare Okunola, told him a kind man in South Africa sent him money, he collapsed’ on the floor.”’

Not a few people across the continent were surprised at Mr Ndhlovu’s extraordinary charity. He and his DafriGroup (the parent company of over 16 subsidiaries including DafriBank) have been regularly involved in philanthropy that cut across different sectors, especially education. In Nigeria, for instance, the UMEH group had rolled out a N100 million Fund Kids Like Success Initiative, a ten-year educational support grant, which seeks to assist struggling and out-of-school students to get back to school.

In a recent post, on his Instagram page, Ndhlovu shared with his followers some of the philanthropic works undertaken by his group in Nigerian schools: “I’m proud of our team at @DafriBank who came up with an idea of adding a mixture of tech during our bursary exams. 25 Tablets were acquired for the program, where most kids were taught how to use tablets for the first time before going into the exam hall.”

Explaining further, he posted: “I have often thought about how kids from underprivileged communities could meet the challenges of an ever-changing world faster and more efficiently and we consider it our duty to provide them an opportunity to explore phenomena relevant for them in a cross-curricular way.”

Their efforts have culminated in traditional chalkboards being replaced with digital whiteboards, and classrooms having surplus iPads. According to the Nigerian South African entrepreneur: “Using devices like a computer, tablet, or other types of technology in the classroom can help turn traditionally dull subjects into interactive and fun activities. As a technology company, It is therefore vitally important for us to take the lead.”