The Men Carve Project is a project led by resolute Durban University of Technology (DUT) students and aims to educate men about healthy manhood and how to treat those closest to them in a respectful manner.
The project is led by Mr Zakhe Khuzwayo, a Department of Informatics and Corporate Management student. In the programme, Zakhe works alongside Nomzamo Mashiyane, Nqobile Khuzwayo, Linda Zikhali, Khulasande Zondi, Asandile Khumalo, and Thembeka Simelane, who are all students in the Department of Informatics and Corporate Management.
Zakhe shares the motivation behind the project and said that was motivated by the high statistics of violence in South Africa and worldwide. “I became concerned, gender-based violence is a personal problem. We want to create an environment whereby girls feel safe around boys,” he said.
The programme seeks to assist men and boys to understand the concept of healthy manhood for the interest of society at large, it also assists women and girls through the prevention of violence and sexual harassment. Furthermore, the project also assists students who have NSFAS-related problems by providing them with food parcels.
The Men Carve project helps the community through a range of programmes that help to promote respectful manhood and prevent sexual assault, sexual harassment, violence, discrimination, bullying in schools and universities, and increase bystander intervention, amongst other impactful programmes. The Sakhi’sizwe campaign is the branch of the Men Carve project which focuses on dispersing food parcels and addressing poverty within tertiary institutions and society at large.
Zakhe acknowledges that the programme also targets Sustainable Development Goals by addressing poverty and servicing the poor. Aside from their primary programming, the team has also travelled around the city visiting the homeless and holding talks with them on the streets. The team have discerned that substance addiction overwhelms many of them, and a lack of support poses a great challenge whenever they decide to quit.
The Men Carve project was selected as one of the top student-led projects during the Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research Innovation and Engagement (DVC RIE): Community Engagement Showcasing and Pitching Awards 2021. Khuzwayo and the team rejoiced after winning their prize of R2500, which they have since used to purchase t-shirts for the executive committee and general members.
Khuzwayo sees the project expanding past the boundaries of South Africa in future, with hopes of spreading their efforts internationally.
Picture: Mr Zakhe Khuzwayo speaking at a GBV event
