August 20, 2004
By Lucille Davie
THE first 83 graduates of CIDA City Campus - South Africa's youngest and most unique university - received their certificates on Thursday, and they literally jumped for joy after four years of hard work.
Surrounded by white and gold draped walls, echoed on the chairs, several hundred students, their families, lecturers and the bosses of CIDA, the graduates skipped up on stage in their gowns to be capped and photographed, to stirring background music.
Excited students after receiving their certificates
One student said: "This is the moment I have been waiting for." Another: "This is way beyond words, I am thrilled." And still another: "I don't know how to describe this feeling . . ." They had just completed the university's Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree.
The ceremony started with vigorous singing from the CIDA choir, before CEO Taddy Blecher took the podium in his rich red robes and announced: "Today is a great, great celebration, a grand celebration in the history of this great institution. You had supreme courage and we admire you for that."
Blecher had previously stood at the entrance to the hall, full of smiles and hugs, welcoming guests with: "Nice to see you, thanks for coming . . . oh, so this is your mother."
Established in 2000 with 350 students, CIDA now has 1 100 students enrolled. Besides the fact that it only offers one course, the university is unique in that it only accepts and awards scholarships to high achievers from previously disadvantaged, often rural, areas. A scholarship means that students only pay R350 for their first year of study, and R150 a month for the subsequent three years of study, a mere 10 percent of what other universities would charge.
In return the students are actively involved in running and maintaining the university - from fixing the computers to cleaning the lecture halls to admin work in the front office. Students are also required to teach money management and business skills during holidays, for which they get credits.
The university is heavily subsidised by the private sector, with donations of buildings, books, equipment and lecturers making the operation possible. Talk show host Oprah Winfrey donated $1-million in December 2003.
CIDA has received worldwide accolades, and Blecher received the World Economic Forum's 'Global Leader for Tomorrow' award in 2002. International academics have also taken an interest in the model: professors from Harvard, Berkeley, MIT, Cambridge, and the London School of Economics have visited CIDA to understand its methodology, described as "an African solution to African issues".
In addition to the 83 graduates, 113 students received ICT (Information and Communications Technology) Academy certificates from Oupa Mopaki, CEO of ISETT Sector Education and Training Authority. Before giving out the certificates Mopaki said, to much cheering: "It was an oversight not to invite representatives from the Guinness Book of Records. You did not have to be in Athens to perform miracles."
Professor Njabulo Ndebele, vice chancellor of the University of Cape Town (UCT), was the guest speaker. He described CIDA as "a worthy model for developing nations around the world", and said that a CIDA branch was to open in 2005 in Cape Town, with close connections to UCT. He called the students "a special group of pioneers".
Each student knelt in front of Blecher, who then placed their BBA-coloured capes around their shoulders with meticulous care, and a gentle, approving tap on the shoulder: "You are now a graduate of CIDA City Campus, congratulations."
Ten top students were named, and given solid gold signet rings. The student of the year was one of 10 percent of scholarships offered to African Union students, Suzana da Rosa - a student from Mozambique who passed cum laude. Invited to give the valedictory speech, she bubbled: "What an honour, what an honour to stand in front of all of you on this day."
She said enrolling at CIDA was "the best thing" and that she had learnt not to be afraid, that "it is okay to cry when I need to or feel insecure sometimes".
She thanked the CIDA founders for dreaming, the sponsors for believing, the lecturers for sharing, and her fellow students for trusting. "Thank you. Siyabonga. Obrigado," she concluded - evidently a feeling readily felt by all students who headed for the food-laben tables to complete their celebration.
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