See the winning competition entries
Children , Fatherhood , YouthIn 2024 we published our Children's Research Report. It helped us understand how children in South Africa see fatherhood and what they hope to see from fathers in their own future. This June, we opened the conversation to all South African children. We wanted to hear, from their perspective, what kind of father boys want to be in future and what girls want to see in the men of their generation when they become fathers.
We were so encouraged, moved and inspired by the entries we received. The entrants submitted voice notes, written entries, artwork, videos and poems sharing their heart for fatherhood. All of the submissions were brilliant, and our judges had a tough time choosing who would win the prizes, but in the end we selected a winner and runner up for each category.
You can see the winning entries below.
Audio and Video Category Winners
Watch Olivia's winning entry.
Ayola's Voice Note
Listen to Ayola's voice note that won as runner up in this category.
Written and Drawing Category Winners
Katlego's winning entry.
The Father I Want To Be
By Chadley (category runner up)
I want to be the dad who knows when to talk,
And knows when to listen, just sits and walks.
Not perfect, not distant, not shouting too loud
But steady like braai smoke, proud but unbowed.
I’ll teach how to fix what’s broken, not blame,
How to stand up tall even after you fall.
Ill show up for matches, for stories at night,
Be the hand on the shoulder when things aren’t right.
The father I want to see, the father Ill be:
One who leads with love, sets the future free.
Strong enough to protect, soft enough to care
A home that feels safe, because I’m there.
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