The Nelson Mandela Learning Centre: A Beacon of Hope in Rustler's Valley

It is open!

The Nelson Mandela Learning Centre in Naledi, a beautiful village situated in Rustler's Valley and the picturesque Maluti Mountains of the eastern Free State, near Ficksburg. 

The Learning Centre, a world-class eco-friendly centre was launched on July 27 in partnership with the Nelson Mandela Foundation, in honour of his lasting memory to building our democracy, one village at a time.

"The dream is a promise we made to our people in 1994 that we will deliver a better life to them," said Jay Naidoo on the iStart2 Show.  "Why haven't we realised this dream in the villages and the rural areas of South Africa? How do we make democracy work for the people who had so little?"

"Together we are working to rebuild the village of the 21st century. We can with very little resources deliver the hope - those pathways of hope and opportunity that Mandela stood for - that countless leaders and countless people paid with their lives - to deliver a better future to the children that follow us."

Earthrise Trust, a non-profit trust, was set up in December 2013 with the purchase of the Rustlers valley farm by three comrades, Jay Naidoo, Kumi Naidoo and Gino Govender, who had worked together as social activists over decades. The book,  “Organising Change in the 21^st Century”, written by Jay Naidoo, is to be released shortly. Read the full story here.