Following a presentation made in relation to the CPUT Convocation Covid-19 Fund at a board meeting of the Faculty of Business and Management Sciences (FBMS), the fund saw a spike in staff donations.

Convocation Executive Member and the Fund’s Head of Campaign, Andiswa Mrasi, says the Faculty was highly supportive of the initiative and offered some limited administrative assistance in support of the campaign.

“We are very grateful for the support we have from staff and are still receiving from the Faculty, especially the Dean’s office,” says Mrasi.

She adds that the Faculty got on board after the concept and objectives of the Fund was presented at a meeting of the university’s Management Committee (ManCom). “I was invited to present during a ManCom Meeting with the Dean of the FBMS being a committee member. It was after this meeting that the Dean, Prof [Paul] Green, invited me to a meeting with other colleagues from within the Faculty and [I] ultimately then presented on the Fund at the Faculty Board Meeting.”

She concedes that it is difficult to quantify the Faculty’s efforts as the Fund’s marketing efforts have been broad and therefore they cannot attach any amount to a specific marketing effort, except for donations from corporate donors such as bursaries and laptops.

The Fund announced in October that since its inception earlier this year it has raised donations to the value of R380 814.50. It was officially launched in May by the Convocation in partnership with the Advancement Department and the Vice-Chancellor’s office to assist the institution in its attempts to save the 2020 academic year in the midst of the  Covid-19 pandemic.

Mrasi adds that plans to sustain the Faculty’s role in support of the Fund are afoot. “We are in a development phase of a strategy to see how the expertise of departments such as marketing, events, retail, etc. can assist us in growing the Fund.”

Green says the Faculty is happy and proud to support such an important initiative which assists students with academic resources they require to complete the 2020 academic year.  “We continue, as a Faculty, to seek creative and innovative ways to stay true to our core values, vision and mission and through our participation in such institutional initiatives, we are afforded the opportunity of doing so,” he adds. 

*For donations to the Fund use the Account Name CPUT Alumni, ABSA Account No. 40-6934-6192, Branch code 630305, Reference Covid and please email proof to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Written by Kwanele Butana
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The CPUT Convocation Covid-19 Fund has announced that since its inception earlier this year it has raised donations to the value of R380 814.50.

The announcement was made by Convocation Executive member and the Fund’s Head of Campaign, Andiswa Mrasi, at a recent handover event on the Granger Bay Campus where seven brand new Lenovo laptops with bags were donated to students by American global corporation PerkinElmer. The donation is worth R50 352.

Mrasi said that the Fund received R53 700 via Electronic Fund Transfers and the online donation portal, three bursaries worth R204 000 and arranged for training on conflict management for the 53 Student Representative Council members to the value of R65 000. She added that the Fund also received a donation of R7 762, 50 for snacks and coffee.

“The fund was established in order to ensure that no student drops out of university due to lack of academic enabling resources,” explained Mrasi.

The Fund was officially launched in May by the Convocation in partnership with the Advancement Department and the Vice-Chancellor’s office to assist the institution in its attempts to save the 2020 academic year in the midst of the  Covid-19 pandemic.

She added that an Institutional survey to assess the number of students not receiving support from the National Student Financial Aid Scheme, Department of Higher Education Science and Training, CPUT or any other source was used to determine the recipients of donations and that final year students were given priority.

Prof Driekie Hay-Swemmer, Executive Director in the Vice-chancellor’s Office, said that the last six months were traumatic as lives were lost to the pandemic and that the big divide between the rich and the poor was exposed.

“I have to say thank you to our donors. While it’s easy for people to apply for donations many are not good at saying thank you,” added Hay-Swemmer. She concluded that no matter how small a donation is, it will impact change in the world.

Dianie Lamprecht, Senior Sales Specialist at PerkinElmer, said her company was privileged to pay it forward by contributing seven laptops with bags to CPUT. “I hope to contribute to CPUT again in the future,” added Lamprecht.

*For donations to the Fund use the Account Name CPUT Alumni, ABSA Account No. 40-6934-6192, Branch code 630305, Reference Covid and please email proof to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Written by Kwanele Butana
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.