‘Nkosi sikelel’ iAfrika – God bless Africa’.
That’s the theme that’s driving Siyanda Dlamini aka Peace Walker’s vision as he interacts with communities across the continent. He spent time in Makhanda, spreading his message of hope with his Peace Walk Foundation and raising funds for his bid to climb Kilimanjaro in January 2025.
“In January this year, I left South Africa, walking north,” he said.
He had reached Tanzania, by a combination of walking and other modes of transport, and decided he’d like to climb Kilimanjaro.
“I decided to come back home and fundraise so that I could.”
Dlamini’s focus over the next two months is physical training, and in late January he will return to Tanzania to climb the mountain.
His theme as he explores other African countries is ‘God bless Africa”.
“So many countries have it as their national anthem,” he said. “Botswana, Namibia, Tanzania and [previously] Zimbabwe. They start with that prayer.”
Dlamini believes the prayer is way to mobilise to tackle poverty in Africa. He’s also concerned about children across the continent who have been deprived of education.
“What role are they going to play in the future,” he asked.
On Friday October 25, he was in Kenton-on-Sea.
“I don’t spend as much time on the road as I used to,” Dlamini says. “Mostly now I spend time with communities.”
If you’d like to help Siyanda on his mission, visit his Facebook page, Peace walk Foundation 2022 where you’ll find details of his bank account as well as a link to his Backabuddy fundraising campaign, along with many encounters across the country, and the continent.
- This article was first published in Talk of the Town, October 31, 2024. The newspaper serving the communities of Ndlambe and the Sunshine Coast, with a weekly wrap of Makhanda news, is available at stores from early on Thursdays.
