University of South Africa: PanSALB recognition for African languages academic

The PanSALB Literature Awards honour individuals and organisations which have been exceptional in delivering on the mandate of promoting, protecting and preserving all South African official languages, including Khoi, Nama and San, as well as South African sign language.

Makgai emerged was awarded second prize for his contribution in promoting Sesotho sa Leboa/Sepedi, amongst others, by having worked for 12 years as an educator and examiner for Sesotho sa Leboa in Gauteng, developing the literature examination papers. He also served as an advisor in the Gauteng Department of Education, training and developing Sesotho sa Leboa educators, to improve the quality of their teaching.

He reminisced: “When the opportunity arose, I just compiled those poems into a book and presented them for the competition, because they were already there. I think the other factor which earned me the second prize, was that it was surprising for the adjudicators that I have such a passion for Sesotho sa Leboa, even though I was born and bred in Tembisa, which is a township where many different African languages are spoken.”

Speaking about his doctorate, Dr Makgai explained that he chose to further his studies in African languages because he realised that, if you are born in a township – like he was – it is easy to use other people’s languages and forget about your own. His research topic was “Exploring the use of imagery by Sesotho sa Leboa Grade 11 learners in essay writing: A study from Gauteng North District”.