Go 8 April 2021

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Princess reaches
out to help others,
her community
In addition to Miss EC Beauty With a Purpose, taking part in
the Mrs SA pageant connected Ngxata with other NPOs
MATTHEW FIELD
For Mdantsane-born Zikhona
Ngxata, who was crowned Second
Princess at the 2021 Mrs South
Africa, a love for pageantry began at an
early age.
“I’ve taken part in pageants since I
was in Grade 2,” she said.
Her first taste of success was also
during primary school when she won
First Princess at a school event.
“I saw pageants were not just about
beauty, but also about beauty with
brains. I saw how it took me away from
the streets; how it taught me to be
p u r p o s e - d r ive n .”
The tragic death of Ngxata’s mother
in 2002 gave new purpose to her
pageantry work and she realised that she
needed to give back to her community in
the Eastern Cape.
She returned to the province in 2007
from Gauteng and the next year
launched Miss Eastern Cape Beauty With
a Purpose.
“Its main goal is empowerment and
development of our youth,” Ngxata said.
“We addressed issues like teenage
pregnancy, substance abuse and the
cycle of poverty.”
Eventually, Ngxata decided that she
needed to extend her outreach activities
beyond her local community.
“After empowering girls in the
Eastern Cape, I said to myself
‘Zikhona, sometimes you need to lead
from the back and sometimes you need
to lead from the front’.
“Me entering Mrs SA 2021 was me
leading from the front, it was me
showing that I wasn’t asking of others
something that I didn’t have,” she said.
In addition to her work at Miss
Eastern Cape Beauty With a Purpose,
taking part in the Mrs SA pageant has
allowed Ngxata to get involved with
other NPOs like Women4Women and
Inspirational Women, which in turn have
allowed her to give back to the
community that has supported her from
the beginning.
“I’d like to thank my gold sponsors
and silver sponsor, Ronnies Motors. I’d
also like to thank my Eastern Cape
community and my husband,” the
princess said.
LEADING FROM THE FRONT: Mrs SA Second Princess Zikhona Ngxata
has worked hard to support her community through her pageant and
outreach work Picture: SUPPLIED
PMI shows third
consecutive increase
MATTHEW FIELD
WINNERS: Scenery Park-based Milan FC’s under-14 team were the overall winners in their age group at the recent
Youth Extravaganza soccer tournament Picture: SUPPLIED
Scores of excitement at
Easter soccer tournament
For the third consecutive month, the
Absa Purchasing Managers' Index
(PMI) rose to reach 57.4 index points
by the end of March, up from 53 in
Fe b r u a r y.
This increase is attributed to an
improvement in all five measured
indices.
Business activity rose by four
points last month, which the
recently released report said could
be a sign of further recovery in the
country's manufacturing sector.
An increase in both export sales
and domestic demand, likely due to
the further lockdown restrictions led
to the new sales orders index
climbing by six points, ending at
60.4 by the end of the month.
Purchasing price went from 83.1
index points in February to 89 points
in March thanks to a weaker Rand
exchange rate and a spike in the
price of Brent crude.
The inventories index rose to its
highest level since October last year,
ending on 56.1 points last month,
while the supplier deliveries index
surged to 69.8 points.
The worst performing index was
employment at 44.4 points, which
was also the only index to fall below
the neutral 50-point mark.
This shows that despite some
improvement in the national
economy, jobs continue to be shed
at a troubling rate. According to
Stats SA's latest Quarterly
Employment Statistics, formal
employment declined by
approximately 13,000 jobs in the
fourth quarter last year.
SIPHOSIHLE DYONASE
The North End Stadium in East London
was buzzing last week as 20 teams went
foot-to-foot in the Youth
Extravaganza Easter Soccer Tournament.
The event was hosted by the department
of sport, recreation, arts and culture
(Dsrac) and the EL Central Football
Association (ELCFA).
The five-day tournament began on
April 1 and ended on April 5.
The Friday match between Milan FC
and Duncan Village Future Stars saw
both U18 teams bring their top game.
Through a tough battle, Milan FC
managed to beat their opponents 2-1.
On Saturday Milan FC’s U14 team,
the champions of the 2019 Easter Cup,
defeated Atlantic Spurs 5-0 in the
quraterfinals. Atletico scored 4-2 against
Pefferville United in the penalty kicks,
while Central United won 1-0 againts the
Pride of India.
❝
Teams were sponsored with
bread from Premeir Bakery
and they received soccer
balls from the Peggy Nesta
Foundation ... the winning
teams received a trophy,
medals for each player,
soccer kits, balls and cones
Teams were sponsored with bread
from Premeir Bakery and they received
soccer balls from the Peggy Nesta
Fo u n d a t i o n .
Napoli finshed off the Peggy Nesta
Champions League group fixtures with a
bang, beating Buffalo Chiefs 7-1
and emerging as the runners-up in
Group A below group winners DiRoma.
Overall, Seagulls Football Club from
CC Lloyd Township won the U18
category and Milan FC of Scenery Park
won the U14 category.
Both of the winning teams received a
trophy, medals for each player, football
kits, soccer balls and cones.
“The focus this year was the U14 and
U18 development teams of the Buffalo
City Metro,” said Dsrac communications
manager Andile Nduna.