Mbali Ngcamu (62), who graduated from Stellenbosch University (SU) this week with an MSc in Food Nutrition and Security, has never considered giving up an option.
Despite a visual impairment that ended her career as a radiographer, illness and the loss of her home in the devastating floods in KwaZulu-Natal last year, Ngcamu has remained steadfast in her determination to make the world a better and more inclusive place.Six Cape Town libraries now in service to visually impaired patrons with learning disabilities
A desire to learn more led her down a new academic path. Ngcamu decided to study the effects of fermented food on the body after experimenting on herself with products brewed and fermented in her kitchen. She enrolled at SU and focused her research on how cabbage, which is widely grown in South Africa, can help eradicate malnutrition and food insecurity.
While she found it difficult to explain to course instructors that she was unable to access information due to her vision, she received ‘amazing’ support from SU’s Disability Unit. She had access to the appropriate software to convert articles into an accessible format thanks to the unit’s support and funding.