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.
Featured
Why women matter in the Fathers Matter story
Read more about Why women matter in the Fathers Matter storyYou may also like
My father's love language
As we think about our father stories, it can help to remember that fathers are people, just like us. And sometimes, connection grows from understanding how they give and receive love.
Read more about My father's love language
The price children pay for migrant labour
Long before we had the social discussion about father absence, South Africa had already built systems that made it normal. Men left home not because they didn’t care, but because they had to.
Read more about The price children pay for migrant labour
What’s Papa got to do with my rage?
Father absence removes one of the first buffers against violence – a daily presence where anger is noticed, slowed down, named, and shaped before it hardens.
Read more about What’s Papa got to do with my rage?
Building your child’s emotional toolkit for school
We know about the uniforms and stationery, but one of the most important things we can help our kids prepare is their emotional toolkit. In South African classrooms and playgrounds, children learn more than the curriculum. They learn how to handle friendships, face challenges, and build skills like communication, empathy, resilience, and problem-solving.
Read more about Building your child’s emotional toolkit for school
The day men returned to school, for their children
On a warm November morning, a classroom at Zonkizizwe Primary School in Orange Farm hosted a different kind of curriculum: fatherhood. No chalkboards, no formal lesson plan, just men arriving with their stories, their children, and the quiet hope of becoming better fathers than the ones they had, or didn’t have.
Read more about The day men returned to school, for their children