Soraya Mohideen, a mother of two girls is making not only Capetonians but South Africans immensely proud as she prepares to head off to one of the most prestigious universities in the world – Harvard University!
However, Soraya’s story is a striking contrast from most people who attend Harvard University, an Ivy League school in the United States renowned for its upper-echelon wealth pool.
Soraya completed her schooling on the Cape Flats 25 years ago, an area in Cape Town plagued with vices and challenges that in stories like Soraya’s, inspired a desire within her to uplift those in inequality entrapment settings she knows first hard.
Her journey took her from a low wage earning position, to someone who is now an expert in local government, with giving back to the community at the forefront of her endeavours.
“This inequality trap is one I know well. The day I finished my final high school exam, I took the bus to a warehouse and collected a black duffle bag filled with rainbow-coloured plastic toys to sell door-to-door.
“Three years later, a call centre job propelled me into the digital workplace at a time when the screech of dial-up modems were heard only in wealthy suburbs,” she explains of her early life.
Through technology and the internet, Soraya began to flourish personally and career-wise in ways that for many people in environments like the Cape Flats, seem reserved for movies and fantasies.
“My journey from low wage work to being a leader at a tech skills accelerator and now a specialist in local government inspires me to tackle youth unemployment through opportunities enabled by an increasingly digitised society,” she explains.
“My career goal is to be an expert in workforce development for the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) to improve lives and drive inclusive growth in Africa,” she says of her future prospects.
She’s had a 21-year long career that’s been intertwined with a sense of purpose for the common good of others. It’s this purpose that has, and continues to driver her determination. The opportunity to attend Harvard’s Public Administration programme for Mid-Career Masters (of which she was the sole recipient out of 100 candidates) is something that Soraya will do with Capetonians in the heart of her studies.
“My unique perspective as a seasoned development professional who is a mother and Muslim woman of colour adds richness to the discourse on economic development, human capital, technology, and poverty alleviation,” Soraya expresses.
Soraya intends to return to the Mother City after she graduates, where as part of the City’s Enterprise and Investment unit, she’ll utilise her further skills to focus on innovation and job creation to spearhead growth in the regional economy.
“Adding the degree to my life history and professional experience in youth employment acceleration, both as a practitioner and as a civil servant, makes me the best person to take on this challenge. A public service career serves my purpose to help young people who remind me of me,” she says of taking on the challenge.
She wishes to bring her family, two young girls, with her to Cambridge Massachusetts to complete her driven studies, and hopes to raise funds through her Go Fund Me campaign to make this dream a reality.
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Picture:Soraya Mohideen/ Go Fund Me