Africa-Press – Eswatini. In a country where many young people silently battle academic pressure, identity crises, and mental health challenges, Sifiso T. Shabangu is becoming the voice of reassurance, resilience, and hope.
At 29 years old, the Siteki-born nurse and founder of the Sifiso Mental Health Foundation has dedicated his life to helping students overcome more than just poor grades, he helps them conquer self-doubt, peer pressure, depression, suicide, substance abuse, gambling and emotional overwhelm. His mission is bold: to shape a generation of focused, mentally strong young people capable of driving Eswatini’s future forward.
I’m not here to just motivate students. I’m here to help them think differently about who they are and what they can become,” says Shabangu, who now speaks in high schools and community spaces across the country.
But he’s not speaking from theory, he’s speaking from experience. Once a student who failed Form 5 and worked grueling farm jobs to survive, Shabangu knows exactly what it feels like to stand on the edge of giving up. “There was a point I cried every day from exhaustion and pain. But it was in that darkness that I decided to fight for my dream.”
That decision changed everything. He eventually returned to school, battled depression with professional help, and earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing from the University of Eswatini in 2024. During his time at university, he began mentoring other students, planting the seeds for the foundation he leads today.
Through the Sifiso Mental Health Foundation, he has reached learners at Gudvwini, Hlutse Nazarene, MDS, Ntsinini, and Kukhanyeni High Schools, among others, sharing tools to manage mental health, deal with peer pressure, and reframe failure.
His message is that your background is not your ceiling. “I often tell students: I didn’t have shoes, but I had a dream. I didn’t have money, but I had vision. If you hold on to what matters, life will make room for you,” he says.
Sifiso credits his late-night reflections, his faith in God, and his father’s words about education for giving him the fire to push forward. Now, he uses both his clinical understanding and lived experience to connect with students on a deep, relatable level.
What drives him most isn’t applause or recognition, it’s the messages from students who say his talks helped them turn their lives around. “That’s my proudest moment every time. When someone says, ‘You made me believe again.’”
As for the legacy he hopes to leave?
“I want to be remembered not just as a speaker or nurse, but as someone who helped shape a healthier, wiser, more self-aware generation,” he says. “Mental health is the foundation of every success. If we want a thriving Eswatini, we have to start in the minds of our youth.”
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