Athlone’s Abdurahman Esau is a step closer to realising his dream of
qualifying as a medical doctor; supported by South Africa’s favourite
petroleum brand Engen, the Rylands High School alumni recorded five
distinctions in the 2019 matric examinations.
This set of impressive results secured Esau top spot amongst the
Western Cape-based Engen Maths and Science School leaners who wrote
matric in 2019.
Esau, along with second-placed Western Cape matric, Fatima Floris
(Claremont High School) and third-placed, Abdullah Jaffer (Claremont
High School) were acknowledged at an awards ceremony at the Cape
Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) in Cape Town on Saturday, 8
February to celebrate the outstanding results of the matric class of
2019. Engen’s long-running Engen Maths and Science School programme offers
supplementary Maths, Science and English tuition to underprivileged
grade 10-12 learners. The 2019 Engen Maths and Science School matric class attained an
impressive 96% overall pass rate of which 70% attained bachelor passes,
versus the broader South African matric pass rate of 81%.
Esau, who hails from Silvertown in Athlone, attributes his excellent
2019 matric results to the extra classes provided by the Engen Maths and
Science School initiative.
“Engen Maths and Science School helped me in so many ways especially
having teachers that were incredibly helpful and knowledgeable, for
which I remain extremely grateful,” says the 19-year-old.
Esau says the experience also helped him improve his self-confidence.
“When I first joined the Engen Maths and Science School, I was
extremely shy and never spoke in class, but as time went by my
confidence grew and I was able to participate and answer questions.”
Esau plans to pursue Islamic studies and the fundamentals of the Arabic
language in 2020 and then to enrol to study medicine at Stellenbosch
University in 2021. He says he dreams of being a successful medical doctor.
“I really want to give back to my community one day, by not
overcharging patients and helping out and volunteering in
underprivileged communities.”
His advice for the matric class of 2020 is that hard work pays off.
“If you don’t put in the effort, you won’t see the results.”
Engen’s General Manager Corporate Strategy and Communications,
Khalid Latiff says the Engen Maths and Science School programme focuses
specifically on providing extra tuition in “gateway” subjects such
as mathematics and science, which are considered critical in addressing
the country’s technical and engineering skills shortage as well as
economic growth and development.
“Engen Maths and Science Schools seek to better the future of
talented young people in difficult circumstances and to contribute to
the pool of scarce skills in the country,” comments Latiff.
“Starting off as Engen Saturday Schools over 30 years ago, Engen
Maths and Science Schools are central to our skills development efforts
and to help build the human capital of the future. The programme has worked tirelessly to transform young lives and
has, we believe, made a meaningful contribution to a more transformed
and the vibrant South African workforce.”
Latiff says the company is incredibly proud of Abdurahmaan and all the
learners who completed matric in 2019.
“Our ultimate reward is to help set them all up to pursue stimulating
careers that won’t only benefit them personally, but also the broader
macroeconomy of South Africa. Importantly, I must acknowledge the role of the Department of Education and thank them for their continued support.
Engen Maths and science schools are a great example of a public/private partnership that is yielding incredible results while helping boost the transformation of the country.
Engen is committed to building tomorrow’s leaders and if we want to ensure that the youth of tomorrow are prepared for a rapidly changing world, we need to ensure that they have the right mix of skills, for them to reach their full potential,” concludes Latiff.
In an exciting development, the Engen Maths and Science Schools are being converted to include STEM/STEAM subjects in 202, to prepare the learners and educators for the fourth industrial revolution (4IR). Engen, which in 2019 was named South Africa’s fastest-growing brand congratulates Hillar and the Engen Maths and Science School class of 2019 and offers a well-deserved round of applause to all the learners and teachers.
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