At just 21, Linda Mudzenda carried the hopes of Zimbabwe—and much of Africa—onto the Britain's Got Talent stage. Her show-stopping vocal performance earned her the Golden Buzzer, but it also represented something bigger: African talent claiming its place on the global stage. We sat down with Linda to hear her story and what this breakthrough means for her future.

Show Notes:

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Acknowledgements:

Luminate, the Constitutionalism Fund, the Shin Creek Trust, the Anne Levy Charitable Trust, the SCP Foundation, Ford Foundation, and Pam and Bill Michaelcheck. 

Special thanks to Rob Byers, and to Hindenburg for supporting our projects across Africa with audio editing software.

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The clock is ticking for 17-year-old Nonhlanhla Mashabana. For months, she’s buried herself in her textbooks. Now, instead of enjoying her matric dance like any teenager should, she can't shake her anxiety about the make-or-break final exams. They're just weeks away. In South Africa, the odds are against her: just 12 out of every 100 students who start Grade 1 will ever reach university. As Nonhlanhla prepares for her greatest challenge yet, the question is: Can she overcome a broken education system, or will it bring her down with it?  

Show Notes 

This is episode two of a series from Radio Workshop that explores the transition to higher education in South Africa. Listen to Episode One, Finding the Right Words.

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Sign up for Radio Workshop’s newsletter on Substack, and connect with us on Instagram and LinkedIn.

Sources: 

• Youth Capital Education Brief
• Public Servants Association of South Africa - Fixing Higher Education in South Africa
• Business Tech - University Fees
• Stats SA - Income and Expenditure Survey
• News24 - Campus crisis: 337 158 matrics qualify for university admission but there are only 202 000 places

Acknowledgements:

Luminate, the Constitutionalism Fund, the Shin Creek Trust, the Anne Levy Charitable Trust, the SCP Foundation, Ford Foundation, and Pam and Bill Michaelcheck. 

Special thanks to Rob Byers, Clotilde Angelucci at Youth Capital, and to Hindenburg for supporting our projects across Africa with audio editing software.

Support the show

We can only do this work because of your support. You can make a donation at radioworkshop.org.

In honor of Youth Day and the enduring resilience of South African students since the 1976 student protests, we're re-releasing Finding The Right Words.

Meet Nonhlanhla Mashabana, a spelling bee champion and high-achieving high school student who has the odds stacked against her. Growing up poor in post-Apartheid South Africa, she carries the weight of her family's hopes for a better life. As she walks down a road that has caused so many to stumble, how will Nonhlanhla navigate a broken education system?

Find out what happens next in episode two, Adulthood is Knocking, dropping soon.

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Ruby is a 30-year-old mother of three, and she’s ready to do whatever it takes to give her kids a better life. Even if it means leaving her family in Zimbabwe to become a live-in care worker in the UK. Now, halfway across the world from everyone she loves, Ruby works around the clock to make enough money to bring her family together again. But can Ruby sustain the punishing routine long enough to pull it off?

Acknowledgements:

Veryus Studio in Harare, Hindenburg, The Ann Levy Trust, The Shin Creek Trust, Luminate and The Ford Foundation.

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We can only do this work because of your support. You can make a donation at radioworkshop.org.

Bana Mwesige was 12 years old when he joined the church choir. Singing was his sanctuary. But now, at age 28, Bana can’t bring himself to sing gospel anymore. It’s not his faith in God that has wavered, it’s his faith in the church. When his pastor tried to "cure" him from what needed no curing, Bana felt something inside of him break.

Sources:

• Human Rights Council - The Lies and Dangers of Efforts to Change Sexual Orientation or Gender Identity
• Human Rights Watch - Dignity Debased: Forced Anal Examinations in Homosexuality Prosecutions
• International Religious Freedom Report for 2012 - Uganda
• Open Democracy - Anti-gay ‘therapy’ offered at Uganda health centres run by aid-funded groups
• Outright International - The Fight To End Conversion Practices in Africa
• Ugandan Parliament - The Anti-Homosexuality Act 2023
• Victory City Chuch, Kampala - “If God Did It For Others He Can Also Do It For Me”
  

Acknowledgements:

The Stephen J. Hendrickson Foundation, the Ann Levy Trust, the Shin Creek Trust, and the Ford Foundation. 

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We can only do this work because of your support. You can make a donation at radioworkshop.org.

Dating is complicated. Not to mention dating on the apps! And for LGBTQI+ folks on the African continent, where many countries criminalise queerness, it’s even MORE complicated. We asked reporters in Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Kenya and Namibia to share how they navigate the highs and lows of seeking romance, community and friendship online. Despite all the pitfalls, love calls out to all of us.

Sources:
Amnesty International - Africa: Barrage of discriminatory laws stoking hate against LGBTI persons 

Acknowledgments:
Produced by Radio Workshop and Context News. This episode would not have been possible without the support of the Free To Be Me program at Hivos. 

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Oliver grew up in Kabwe, one of the most toxic towns in the world. His mom wouldn't even let him play outside because the land, wind, and air are so heavily polluted from nearly a century of lead mining. Now 18, Oliver sees a new wave of mining sweeping across Zambia. This time, mining companies want to extract minerals for the clean energy boom. Oliver faces a choice: fight the industry as an activist, or join it to change it from within?

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Damola is waiting for an email that will change her life… A Canadian visa. Six months ago, she decided to emigrate. Despite a fulfilling career as a dentist, Damola wants out. And she’s ready to leave behind everything and everyone she knows including her recently widowed mother. According to a recent survey, 70% of Nigerians aged 15 to 35 want to leave the country. How did Nigeria get here?

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[Trigger Warning: Mentions of sexual harassment, rape and child abuse]

Lella Miskir is tired of the constant harassment she and other women in Ethiopia experience on the daily. In response, Lella now walks through the streets of Addis Ababa, armed – with a small, red whistle. Her online campaign, #MyWhistleMyVoice, encourages women to blow their whistle every time a man catcalls them, acts inappropriately towards them or assaults them. It’s giving women confidence and hope, but blowing the whistle on men’s bad behaviour has been met with backlash and even threats to Lella’s life.

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South African spelling bee champion, Nonhlanhla Mashabana, faces her greatest challenge to date: her final year of high school and the precarious and uncertain transition to higher education. There's a lot standing in her way: growing up poor in post-Apartheid South Africa, the weight of carrying the family's hopes of a better life, and the fear of being the first to leave home. As she walks down a road that has caused so many to stumble, how will Nonhlanhla navigate a broken education system?

Support the show

We can only do this work because of your support. You can make a donation at radioworkshop.org.