By Ndalo Mbombo
Last but certainly not least, Rhodes University will honour Eugenia Mbekeni in the very last session of the autumn graduation. The university recognises her for her revolutionary and impactful contribution to youth development and women’s empowerment.
Mbekeni will receive an Honorary Doctorate of Laws (LLD). Although delighted to be honoured in this way, she said: “This recognition is not so much for me alone as Mama Eugenia Mbekeni; it’s for all the leadership of the Girl Guides and also for the girls who have gone through our training and became people of note after that.”
In an interview with Grocott’s Mail, she revealed that joining the Girl Guides Association of South Africa was not planned. She went from hosting the officials of Girl Guides in the living room of her matrimonial home in Tsolo to being recruited for training in the Mthatha District Girl Guides. It was simply a divine appointment with destiny.
Despite not being a Girl Guide from her youth, after two training sessions, she began her work as a guide, and she quickly moved up the ladder. Her skills in financial management were noticed, and this led to an offer to join the committee that runs an outlet for Girl Guides uniforms. She then worked her way up to District Commissioner in Mthatha and then to Chief Commissioner of South Africa.
Her contribution to the Girl Guides is evident in the details of her detailed resume. In addition, she has received many awards, the most notable being named a life honorary member of the Girl Guides Association of South Africa and the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts. These testify to the role she has played in the Girl Guides nationally and internationally.
Mbekeni takes great pride in her involvement in this organisation and understands the profound impact that it has on the lives of girls and young women across the globe. As she described what serving in the Girl Guides has taught her, her face had a look of fondness: “Leadership skills, how to behave, what to do when you are faced with a challenge that requires you contact authorities like the police, how to regard your family with respect and everything that has to do with character, is what Girl Guides offers.”
“By honouring me, they are saying something about Girl Guides; they are saying this is a wonderful organisation, and it’s doing a good job,” she remarked.
