SA/Washington internship programme
2009-04-16
TWELVE young South African leaders have just been offered an opportunity of a lifetime, earning a place on the South African Washington Internship Programme. The programme, though encouraging service and leadership, aims to create a South Africa with strong leaders who have a global perspective and who serve others with humility and integrity, and in so doing inspire future generations to do the same. Come June, the team of tertiary education level students will travel to Washington DC to begin an eight week internship while living with an American host-family. On their return to South Africa, they will carry out thirty hours of community service and become new members of the growing alumni network. Paarlite Jean Scrimgeour, an alumnus of the 2007 programme, interned at the Council for Community of Democracies. Having recently graduated from the University of Cape Town, she is now honing her leadership skills working as SAWIP Program Coordinator and will be retuning to DC for the third time this year. Chisto van Wyk, also from Paarl, went on the programme last year and played a key role in the selection of this year’s team. For him, his experiences in DC and the American workplace were invaluable. “My work placement at National Strategies Incorporated gave me the opportunity to critically assess the challenges and opportunities that currently face South Africa, as well as those we will face in the future,” he says. Jean is hopeful of this year’s team and is inspired by their commitment to the program and to South Africa. Scrimgeour has run a rigorous selection process and the twelve candidates selected from the Western Cape universities will be tackling issues facing South Africa in order to strengthen a sustainable, efficient democracy with active citizens. The programme hopes to build trust between members that transcends racial, socio-economic and religious boundaries. For more information on the program or to follow the journey of this year’s team, visit www.sawip.org. (- Kate Hardie Buckley).
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