CIDA City Campus
CIDA City Campus was established in2000 In Johannesburg, as South Africa’s first non-profit university to offer a four year business degree (BBA), accessible to young, historically disadvantage women and men, with a program specifically designed to accommodate the educational and financial needs of these students, and redress the legacy of apartheid.
CIDA City Campus sees the future of a prosperous South Africa in the potential of its people. It believes education has a vital role in unlocking that potential for the benefit of the individual student, their families, their communities and South Africa as a nation. CIDA graduates are sought after because CIDA City Campus embraces innovation for social change in its approach to both running the organization and delivering the academic curriculum, and thus embeds social awareness, ethical practices and creative thinking in the experience of the students.
Ten years on, CIDA has had the time and experience to strategically review its achievements, its offer, its strengths and its impact. CIDA’s core business is the BBA undergraduate degree. However, its Unique Selling Point (USP) is its focus on bringing the BBA to young Africans who would not access the existing University sector. To do this, CIDA has (i) made use of innovation and creative thinking – it brought entrepreneurial values to an otherwise expensive academic tradition; (ii) and integrated community engagement work within BBA. This experience for the students is what sets the CIDA graduates apart from other graduates.
In 2010 CIDA is using Creativity, Innovation, Development, and Access to focus on three areas for strategic strengthening and development, which together will enable CIDA to lead International debate on new ways of doing business and delivering education that optimize innovation for social change, by informing, influencing, and supporting cross sector policy agendas and investment choices:
- Social Enterprise and entrepreneurship
- Community engagement
- Alumni network
“CIDA has opened our eyes to a new ways of thinking and supporting our young people in education. I am inspired by its extraordinary reach across our nation, and am proud to be associated with its vision.”
– Nelson Mandela
CIDA CITY CAMPUS (CIDA)
Diamond Empowerment Fund’s contribution to CIDA City Campus’ endowment fund has been used to acquire CIDA Park Extension, a parcel of land and existing buildings next to the CIDA Park Campus. These buildings provide housing and daily meals for up to 300 students.
At CIDA, the provision of room and board is a crucial factor for the students ability to succeed in school, as most students and their families would not have the means to pay for this expense and would be at high risk of dropping out if trying to navigate a major daily commute or acquire off-campus housing in Johannesburg.
D.E.F.’s grant for the CIDA Park Extension will also support the renovation and upgrade of the buildings over the next two years.
Find Out More
VIDEOS
CIDA City Campus: Where Hope Becomes Reality
CIDA City Campus: Compassion Philosophy for Education
CIDA Poets: Nathi and Cyber: Rapid-fire Rhymes
FEATURED STUDENTS
Read an interview with CIDA City Campus students Brenda Tame and Lesego Magana
WEBSITE
To find out more about CIDA, visit cidafoundation.org.
news & upcoming events
follow us on twitter def_africa
- Bid on this great package from world renowned fashion designer, Tory Burch! All proceeds support education in Africa http://t.co/Q9xybnKu 1 week ago
- Bid on this great package from world renowned fashion designer, Tory Burch! http://t.co/Q9xybnKu http://t.co/nLwvaW4M 1 week ago
- More updates...
def blog
I’ve been in the beautiful city of Hong Kong for almost a week now. I am here to raise money for the Diamond Empowerment Fund (DEF), my non-profit organization which is dedicated to supporting the empowerment of African youth.
get involved
Help DEF further our mission of EMPOWERMENT!
